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HEIDI 

A  LITTLE  SWISS  GIRL'S  CITY  AND 
MOUNTAIN  LIFE 

BY 

FRAU  JOHANNA  SPYRI 


TRANSLATED  FROM  THE  THIRTEENTH  GERMAN  EDITION 

BY 

HELEN  B.  DOLE 


WITH  ILLUSTRATIONS 


GINN  AND   COMPANY 

BOSTON  •  NEW  YORK  •  CHICAGO  •  LONDON 


Copyright,  1899 
GINN  AND  COMPANY 


ALL  RIGHTS   RESERVED 


513-5 


g<lt   gtbenatttm   jPre«« 

GINN  AND  COMPANY  •  PRO- 
PRIETORS •  BOSTON  •  U.S.A. 


\ 


INTRODUCTION 


Heidi,  the  Swiss  dialect  diminutive  of  Adelheid,  is 
in  itself  an  attractive  name  for  a  book ;  but  each  of 
the  two  parts  into  which  the  German  story  is  divided 
bears  a  rather  long  and  cumbrous  explanatory  title 
besides  the  subtitle.^ 

Judged  from  a  critical  standpoint,  the  literary  style 
of  the  original  is  far  from  perfect ;  the  sentences  are 
frequently  prolix,   carelessly   constructed,   and  full   of 
repetitions.     Nevertheless,  in  spite  of  technical  flaws, 
it  is  a  classic  for  children.     It  is  true  to  life,  sprightly 
and  at  the  same  time  serious,  sincere  and  yet  overflow- 
ing with  healthful  innocent  mirth,  often  tempered  with 
a  tender  pathos  which  is  akin  to  poetic  sentiment,  and 
S.     yet  perfectly  free  from  any  trace  of  sentimentality.     It 
is  permeated  with  the  deepest  love  for  nature,  but  the 
;^-^      descriptions '  are  never  wearisome,   and  it   breathes  a 
^      beautiful  religious  spirit,  but  it  is  the  simple  religion 
^     of  childhood  unwitting  of  denominational  differences. 

^  1.    "  Heidis  Lehr-  und  Wanderjahre :  eine   Geschichte  fur  Kinder 

.   ^        und  auch  fiir  Solche  welche  die  Kinder  lieb  haben" ;  2.  "Heidi  kann 

\i        brauchen  was  es gelernt  hat."    "  Heidi's  Years  of  Learning  and  Travel "; 

"Heidi  makes  Use  of  what  she  has  learned."     Both  have  the  same 

subtitle  :  "  A  Story  for  Children  and  for  such  as  love  Children," 


m 


iv  INTRODUCTION 

The  conversations  are  vivacious  and  natural,  and  the 
primitive  life  on  the  Alpine  pastures  is  happily  con- 
trasted with  the  more  conventional  existence  of  the 
wealthy  city  home,  into  which  the  little  unsophisticated 
mountain  maiden  comes  like  a  breath  of  upper  air. 
Her  experiences  are  charmingly  portrayed,  and  one 
entirely  forgets  tha'  one  is  not  reading  a  transcript 
from  real  life,  so  vivid  is  the  characterization,  so  per- 
fect the  realism,  so  consistent  the  narration.  The 
cultured  German  merchant,  his  serene  and  patient  lit- 
tle invalid  daughter,  his  wise  and  energetic  mother, 
the  precise  and  formal  governess,  the  pert  chamber- 
maid, the  kind-hearted  serving  man,  the  noble  and 
generous  doctor,  Heidi  and  her  much  misunderstood 
but  picturesque  old  grandfather,  the  Aim-Uncle,  the 
village  pastor,  the  blind  old  woman  in  her  shaky  hovel, 
and  her  dull  and  devoted  grandson,  Peterli,  and,  last 
but  not  least,  the  carefully  individualized  goats  are  all 
drawn  with  an  unerring. hand. 

The  author  began  her  literary  activity  rather  late  in 
life  and  was  led  to  writing  stories  for  children  through 
•the  solicitations  of  a  friend.  Her  first  book  was  pub- 
lished in  1870,  during  the  time  of  the  Franco-Prussian 
War,  and  the  proceeds  of  it  were  given  in  aid  of  the 
wounded.  All  her  earlier  works  were  anonymous. 
"  Heidi's  Years  of  Learning  and  Travel  "  was  the  third 
in  the  series  of  Stories  for  Children  and  those  that 
love  Children,  which  began  in  1879  and  has  contin- 
ued till  the  present  time.  It  finally  became  known 
that  the  author  of  these  charming  tales  was  the  wife  of 


INTRODUCTION  V 

the  town  clerk  of  Zurich.  She  came  of  literary  ante- 
cedents. Her  father  was  a  well-known  and  very  active 
physician  of  the  little  mountain  village  of  Hirzel  in 
Canton  Zurich ;  her  mother  was  the  popular  poet  Meta 
Heusser.  Her  home  was  an  unusually  brilliant  social 
centre,  where  the  young  girl  met  many  of  the  celebri- 
ties of  the  time ;  it  was  also  overflowing  with  brothers 
and  sisters,  so  that  she  had  abundant  opportunities  to 
know  child  life  at  first  hand. 

Johanna  Heusser  was  born  on  the  twelfth  of  June, 
1829,  and  in  1852  she  married  her  former  schoolmate, 
the  Rechtskonsulent,  or  legal  adviser,  Bernhard  Spyri. 
On  his  death  in  December,  1884,  she  published  a  tribute 
to  his  memory.  Since  her  first  book  was  written  there 
have  been  few  years  when  some  new  work  from  her 
pen  has  not  appeared,  and  she  has  been  long  recognized 
as  one  of  the  world's  favorite  writers  for  children.  Her 
stories  have  been  translated  into  various  languages,  and 
some  of  them  are  printed  in  raised  letters  for  the  blind. 
'I*he  Swiss  3chuldirector,  J.  V.  Widemann,  president  of 
the  Commission  for  Children's  Literature,  wrote  in  the 
Universal  Swiss  Teachers'  Journal  an  article  declar- 
ing Frau  Spyri  to  be  the  best  of  contemporary  women 
writers  for  the  young,  and  added  that  he  knew  of  no 
man  to  be  compared  with  her. 

The  general  title  of  her  stories  indicates  the  scope  of 
her  work.  There  are  children's  books  which  only  chil- 
dren like,  and  such  books  are  undesirable  for  children. 
It  may  be  safely  said  that  not  one  of  the  few  great 
books  —  the  so-called  classics  for  the  young  —  appeals 


vi  INTRODUCTION 

more  strongly  to  those  for  whom  they  were  written 
than  to  their  elders.  This  is  certainly  the  case  with 
"  Heidi,"  which  a  healthy  appetite  will  not  find  cloying 
even  after  many  readings.  The  story  has  touched  the 
popular  heart,  and  many  impressions  and  several  edi- 
tions, the  later  ones  with  charming  illustrations,  have 
been  published. 

The  present  translation  has  been  carefully  made  with 
the  idea  of  preserving  as  far  as  possible  the  homely 
simplicity  and  vivacity  of  the  original,  the  charm  of  its 
absolute  sincerity  and  wholesome  humor.  It  cannot 
fail  to  appeal  to  every  reader,  and  every  reader  will  be 
sure  to  recommend  it  to  an  increasing  circle  of  friends. 
It  is  thus  that  great  books  become  firmly  established 
in  the  affections  of  a  people. 

Nathan  Haskell  Dole 

"Hedgecote,"  Glen  Road,  Jamaica  Plain 
Boston,  Mass.,  Oct.  3,  1899 


CONTENTS 


PART    I.  — HEIDI'S    YEARS    OF   LEARNING 
AND   TRAVEL 

CHAPTER  PAGE 

I.     The  Alm-Uncle i 

II.     At  the  Grandfather's i8 

III.  In  the  Pasture 29 

IV.  At  the  Grandmother's 47 

V.     Two  Visits  and  their  Consequences 65 

VI.     A  New  Chapter  and  Entirely  New  Scenes  ...  80 
Vll.     Fraulein    Rottenmeier    Has   an    Uncomfortable 

Day 92 

Vlll.     Disturbances  in  the  Sesemann  House in 

IX.     The    Master    of   the    House    Hears    of    Strange 

Doings 126 

X.     A  Grandmamma 135 

XL    Heidi  Improves  in  Some  Respects,  and  in  Others 

Grows  Worse 149 

XII.    The  Sesemann  House  is  Haunted  .......  156 

XIII.  Up  the  Alm  on  a  Summer  Evening 172 

XIV.  Sunday  when  the  Church  Bells  Ring 195 

vii 


yiii  CONTENTS 


PART   II.  — HEIDI    MAKES   USE   OF   WHAT   SHE 
HAS    LEARNED 

CHAPTER  ^^^^ 

I.     Preparations  for  a  Journey 215 

II.     A  Guest  on  the  Alm 225 

III.  Consolation 23^ 

IV.  The  Winter  in  Dorfli 252 

V.    The  Winter  still  Continues 268 

VI.     Distant  Friends  are  Heard  from 279 

VII.    What  Further  Happened  on  the  Mountain      .    .  301 

VIII.     Something  Unexpected  Happens 3M 

IX.    Parting  to  Meet  again 334 


Part  I 


HEIDI'S   YEARS   OF   LEARNING   AND   TRAVEL 


HEIDI 


CHAPTER   I 

THE   ALM-UNCLE 

From  the  pleasantly  situated  old  town  of  Mayenfeld 
a  footpath  leads  up  through  shady  green  meadows  to 
the  foot  of  the  mountains,  which,  as  they  gaze  down  on 
the  valley,  present  a  solemn  and  majestic  aspect.  Any 
one  who  follows  it  will  soon  catch  the  pungent  fragrance 
of  grassy  pasture  lands,  for  the  footpath  goes  up  straight 
and  steep  to  the  Alps, 

One  bright,  sunny  June  morning,  a.  tall,  sturdy  look- 
ing girl,  evidently  a  native  of  the  mountains,  might 
have  been  seen  climbing  this  narrow  path.  She  led 
by  the  hand  a  little  maiden,  whose  cheeks  glowed  as  if 
a  ruddy  flame  were  under  her  dark  brown  skin.  And 
what  wonder.?  In  spite  of  the  hot  June  sun,  the  child 
was  bundled  up  as  if  for  protection  against  the  keenest 
cold.  She  could  not  have  been  five  years  old,  but  it 
was  impossible  to  tell  anything  about  her  natural  fig- 
ure, for  she  wore  two  or  three  dresses,  one  over  the 
other,  and  a  big  red  cotton  handkerchief  around  her 
neck;  her  feet  were  lost  in  heavy  hobnailed  shoes,  and 


HEIDI 


the  little  thing  was  quite  formless  as  she  made  her  hot 
and  laborious  way  up  the  mountain. 

At  the  end  of  an  hour  of  steady  climbing  the  two 
girls  came  to  the  hamlet  that  lies  halfway  up  the  Aim, 
and  is  called  Im  Dbrfli,  or  the  Little  Village.  Here 
they  were  greeted  from  almost  every  cottage,  and  by 

every  one  in  the 
street,  for  the  older 
of  the  two  girls  had 
reached  her  home. 
Nevertheless,  she 
made  no  pause  but 
hurried  on,  answer- 
ing all  questions 
and  greetings  as 
she  went.  At  the 
very  end  of  the 
hamlet,  as  she  was 
passing  the  last  of 
the  scattered  cot- 
tages, a  voice  from 
the  doorway  cried  : 
"  Wait  a  moment,  Dete,  I  '11  go  with  you,  ij[.  you  are 
bound  up  the  mountain." 

The  girl  addressed  stopped ;  immediately  the  child 
withdrew  her  hand  and  sat  down  on  the  ground. 
"  Are  you  tired,  Heidi }  "  asked  her  companion. 
"  No,  I  am  hot,"  replied  the  little  girl. 
"We    are    almost    there,"   said  her  companion,  en- 
couragingly.     "  You  must   put   out  all   the   strength 


>/^ 


THE   ALM-UNCLE 


fmi   have  for  a  little  while  longer  ;  it  won't  take  us 
more  than  an  hour," 

Just  then  a  large,  pleasant-looking  woman  came 
out  of  the  cottage  and  joined  them.  The  little  girl 
jumped  to  her  feet  and  followed  the  two  women,  who 
had  instantly  fallen  into  a  lively  conversation  regarding 
all  the  inhabitants  of  the  hamlet  and  of  the  neighbor- 
hood, 

"  But  really,  Dete,  where  are  you  taking  the  child  ? " 
asked  tlie  newcomer.  "  It  is  your  sister's  little  girl, 
is  n't  it,  —  the  orphan  ?  " 

"  Yes,  it  is,"  replied  the  other,  "  I  am  taking  her  up 
to  her  grandfather  ;  she  will  have  to  stay  there." 

**  What  !  the  little  girl  is  going  to  live  with  the  Aim- 
Uncle  ?  You  must  have  lost  your  senses,  Dete  !  How 
can  you  think  of  doing  such  a  thing.?  The  old  man 
will  send  you  back  with  such  a  scheme  as  that." 

"  He  can't  do  it ;  he 's  her  grandfather,  and  it  is  time 
for  him  to  look  out  for  her ;  I  have  had  her  till  now, 
and  I  must  tell  you.  Barbel,  that  I  could  not  think  of 
letting  her  hinder  me  from  taking  such  a  place  as  I 
have  just  had  offered  me.  Her  grandfather  must  do 
his  part  pow."  ^ 

"  That 's  very  well,  if  he  were  like  other  men,"  urged 
the  portly  Barbel  with  some  indignation.  "But  you 
know  what  he  is.  What  will  he  do  with  a  child  — 
especially  with  such  a  young  one  ?  He  won't  hear 
of  such  a  thing —  But  where  are  you  going.?" 
/^  "  To  Frankfurt,"  said  Dete,  "  I  have  an  extra  good 
;,. place  there.     The  family  was  down  at  the  Baths  last 


4  HEIDI  t 

summer ;  I  had  charge  of  their  rooms,  and  they  wanted 
then  to  take  me  back  with  them.  I  could  n't  manage 
it ;  but  they  are  here  again  this  year,  and  still  want  me 
to  go  with  them,  and  I  am  going ;  you  may  be  sure  of 
that." 

"  I  'm  glad  I  'm  not  in  the  child's  place  !  "  cried  Barbel 
with  a  gesture  of  repulsion.  "  Nobody  knows  what  ails 
the  old  man  up  there.  He  will  have  nothing  to  do  with 
a  living  soul ;  from  one  end  of  the  year  to  the  other  he 
never  sets  foot  in  a  church  ;  and  if  once  in  a  twelve- 
month he  comes  down  with  his  thick  staff,  every  one 
keeps  out  of  his  way  and  is  afraid  of  him.  With  his 
heavy  gray  eyebrows  and  his  tremendous  beard  he 
looks  like  a  heathen  and  a  savage,  and  people  are 
glad  enough  not  to  meet  him  alone." 

"Nevertheless,"  said  Dete  stubbornly,  "he's  her 
grandfather,  and  it  's  his  business  to  look  after  the 
child ;  he  won't  do  her  any  harm ;  if  he  does,  he  will 
have  to  answer  for  it,  not  I." 

"  I  should  like  to  know,"  said  Barbel  insinuatingly, 
"  I  should  really  like  to  know  what  the  old  man  has  on 
his  conscience  that  makes  him  look  so  fierce  and  live 
all  alone  up  there  on  the  Aim  and  keep  almost  hidden 
from  sight.  People  tell  all  sorts  of  stories  about  him ; 
of  course  you  must  know  something  about  it,  Dete ; 
your  sister  must  have  told  you;  hasn't  she.'" 

"  Of  course  she  has,  but  I  hold  my  tongue ;  if  he 
should  hear  of  it,  I  should  suffer ! " 

But  Barbel  had  long  desired  to  know  the  real  cause 
of  the  Aim-Uncle's  peculiarities,  and  why  it  was  that-t" 


THE  A LM- UNCLE  5 

he  looked  so  gloomy  and  lived  alone  by  himself  on  the 
mountain,  and  why  -pec^le  always  spoke  of  him  with 
bated  breath,  a»  if  tl^y  were  afraid  to  be  against  him 
and  yet  would  iw)t  say  anything  in  his  favor. 

Barbel  also  w£»s  ignorant  of  the  reason  that  all  the 
people  in  the  village  called  him  the  Aim-Uncle,  for 
of  course  he  could  not  be  the  actual  uncle  of  all  the 
inhabitants  ;  but  as  every  one  called  him  so,  she  did 
the  same  and  never  spoke  of  the  old  man  as  anything 
else  than  "Ohi,"  which  in  the  dialect  of  that  region 
means  uncle. 

Barbel  had  only  recently  married  into  the  village ; 
before  that  her  home  had  been  down  in  the  valley  at 
Prattigau,  and  she  was  not  familiar  with  all  the  happen- 
ings and  all  the  curious  characters  of  the  village  and 
the  surrounding  region  thnwgh  a  long  series  of  years. 

Her  good  friend  Dete,  on  the  contrary,  was  a  native 
of  the  village  and  had  lived  there  till  within  a  year. 
Then  her  mother  had  died  and  she  had  ^'one  down  to 
Ragatz,  where  the  Baths  are,  and  had  found  a  fine  posi- 
tion as  chambermaid  in  a  great  hotel.  She  had  come 
from  Ragatz  that  very  morning  with  the  little  girl,  hav- 
ing had  the  chance  to  ride  as  far  as  Mayenfeld  on  a  hay 
wagon  which  an  acquaintance  of  hers  was  driving  h(5me. 

Barbel  thought  that  this  was  a  good  chance  to  find 
out  something,  and  she  was  bound  not  to  let  it  slip. 
She  seized  Dete's  arm  confidentially  and  said :- — 

"  But  one  can  learn  the  real  truth  from  you  instead 
of  the  gossip  which  is  talked;  I  am  sure  you  know 
the   whole   story.      Come   now,   just  tell   me  what  is 


6  HEIDI 

the  matter  with  the  old  man ;  has  he  always  been  so 
feared  ?     Has  he  always  been  such  a  hermit  ?  " 

"  I  can't  tell  whether  he  has  always  been  so  or  not ; 
I  am  twenty-six  now,  and  he  is  certainly  seventy,  and  of 
course  I  never  saw  him  when  he  was  young ;  you  might 
know  that.  If  I  were  certain  that  he  would  never  again 
be  seen  in  all  Prattigau,  I  might  tell  you  all  sorts  of 
things  about  him ;  my  mother  was  from  Domleschg, 
and  so  was  he." 

"There  now,  Dete,  what  do  you  mean?"  exclaimed 
Barbel,  a  little  offended.  "You  need  not  be  so  severe  on 
our  gossip  in  Prattigau  ;  and,  besides,  I  can  keep  a  secret 
or  two  if  need  be.     Now  tell  me  ;  you  shan't  regret  it." 

"Well  then,  I  will ;  but  mind  you  hold  your  tongue," 
said  Dete  warningly.  Before  she  began  she  glanced 
round  to  see  if  the  little  girl  were  not  too  close  at  their 
heels  to  hear  every  word  that  was  said.  The  child  was 
not  to  be  seen;  she  must  have  ceased  following  them 
some  distance  back,  but  in  their  lively  conversation 
they  had  not  noticed  it.  Dete  stood  still  and  gazed 
all  around.  There  were  several  turns  in  the  footpath ; 
nevertheless  they  could  see  almost  all  the  way  down  to 
the  village.     Not  a  soul  was  in  sight. 

"  I  see  her  !  "  exclaimed  Barbel.  "  There  she  is  ! 
Don't  you  see  her .'' "  and  she  pointed  with  her  finger 
to  a  place  quite  distant  from  the  path.  "  She  is  climb- 
ing up  the  cliffs  with  the  goatherd  Peter  and  his  goats. 
Why  is  he  so  late  to-day  with  his  animals }  But 
it  is  just  as  well,  for  he  can  look  after  the  child,  and 
you  will  be  all  the  better  able  to  talk  with  me." 

4 


THE  ALM-UNCLE  7 

"  Peter  need  n't  trouble  himself  to  look  after  her," 
remarked  Dete;  "she  is  not  dull  for  a  child  of  five 
years ;  she  keeps  her  eyes  open  and  sees  what  is  going 
on.  I  have  already  noticed  that,  and  it's  a  good  thing 
for  her  that  she  does.  The  old  man  has  nothing  to 
leave  her  but  his  two- goats  and  his  mountain  hut." 

"And  did  he  once  have  more.?"  asked  Barbel. 

"  He }  Well,  I  should  say  that  he  did  once  have  ^ 
more,"  replied  Dete  warmly ;  "  he  used  to  have  the  finest 
farm  in  Domleschg.  He  was  the  eldest  son  and  had 
only,  one  brother,  who  was  quiet  and  well  behaved.  But 
the  elder  would  do  nothing  but  play  the  fine  gentleman 
and  travel  about  the  country,  mixing  with  bad  people 
that  nobody  knew  about.  He  drank  and  gambled  away 
the  whole  property ;  and  so  it  happened  that  his  father 
and  mother  died,  one  first  and  then  the  other,  from  sheer 
grief ;  and  his  brother,  who  was  also  reduced  to  beggary, 
went  away  out  of  mortification,  nobody  knew  where; 
and  the  uncle  himself,  as  he  had  nothing  left  but  a  bad 
name,  also  disappeared  —  at  first  no  one  knew  whither, 
then  it  was  reported  that  he  had  gone  with  the  soldiers 
to  Naples,  and  after  that  nothing  more  was  heard  of 
him  for  twelve  or  fifteen  years.  Then  he  suddenly 
appeared  again  in  Domleschg  with  a  half-grown  boy 
and  tried  to  find  a  home  for  him  among  his  relations. 
But  every  door  was  closed  to  him,  and  no  one  wanted 
to  know  anything  more  about  him.  This  made  him  very 
bitter ;  he  said  he  would  never  set  foot  in  Domleschg 
again,  and  he  came  here  to  Dorfli  and  lived  with  the 
boy.     His  wife  was  probably  a  Grison  woman  whom 


8  HEIDI 

he  had  come  across  down  below  and  soon  after  lost. 
He  must  have  had  some  money  still,  for  he  let  the  boy 
Tobias  learn  the  carpenter's  trade  ;  and  he  was  a  steady 
fellow  and  well  thought  of  by  all  the  people  in  Dorfli. 
But  nobody  had  confidence  in  the  old  nian,  and  it  was 
said  that  he  had  deserted  from  Naples,  that  he  had  got 
into  trouble,  that  he  had  killed  somebody,  not  in  war 
of  course,  but  in  some  quarrel.  But  we  recognize  the 
relationship,  for  my  mother's  grandmother  was  his 
grandmother's  first  cousin.  So  we  called  him  Uncle, 
and  as  we  are  related  to  almost  all  the  people  in  Dorfli, 
on  father's  side,  they  all  call  him  Uncle,  and  since  he 
went  up  on  the  Aim  he  has  been  known  as  the  Aim- 
Uncle." 

"  But  what  became  of  Tobias  ?"  asked  Barbel  eagerly. 

"  Wait  and  I  '11  tell  you.  I  can't  tell  all  things  in  one 
breath  ! "  exclaimed  Dete.  "  Tobias  was  serving  his  time 
in  Mels,  and  as  soon  as  he  finished  he  came  home  to 
Dorfli  and  married  my  sister  Adelheid,  for  they  had 
always  been  fond  of  each  other,  and  after  their  mar- 
riage they  lived  very  happily  together.  But  it  did  n't 
last  long.  Two  years  after,  while  Tobias  was  working 
on  a  new  house,  a  beam  fell  on  him  and  killed  him. 
Adelheid's  fright  and  grief  when  her  husband  was 
brought  home  so  disfigured  threw  her  into  a  violent 
fever,  from  which  she  did  not  recover.  She  never  was 
very  strong,  and"  was  often  in  such  a  condition  that  it 
was  almost  impossible  to  tell  whether  she  was  asleep  or 
awake.  Only  two  weeks  after  Tobias's  death  Adelheid 
too  was  buried.     Then  the  sad  fate  of  the  two  was  in 


THE  ALM-UNCLE  9 

everybody's  mouth  far  and  wide,  and  it  was  hinted  and 
openly  declared  that  it  was  a  judgment  the  uncle 
deserved  for  his  godless  life.  It  was  said  so  to  his 
face ;  even  the  priest  admonished  him  seriously  to 
do  penance,  but  he  only  grew  more  and  more  surly 
and  obdurate  and  no  longer  spoke  to  any  one,  and 
every  one  avoided  him. 

"  Suddenly  it  was  reported  that  the  uncle  had  gone 
up  on  the  Aim  and  no  longer  came  down  at  all  ;  since 
then  he  has  staid  there  and  lives  at  enmity  with  God 
and  man. 

"  Mother  and  I  took  Adelheid's  little  child  ;  she  was 
a  year  old.  Last  summer  mother  died,  and  as  I  wanted 
to  work  down  at  the  Baths,  I  took  her  to  board  with 
old  Ursel  up  in  Pfafferserdorf.  I  was  able  to  stay  at 
the  Baths  all  winter.  I  found  plenty  of  work,  because  I 
could  sew  and  mend ;  and  early  in  the  spring  the  lady 
I  served  last  year  came  back  from  Frankfurt,  and  she 
is  going  to  take  me  home  with  her.  Day  after  to-mor- 
row morning  we  start.  It  is  a  good  place,  I  can  tell 
you."  '  ^ 

"  And  now  are  you  going  to  give  the  child  to  the  old 
man  up  there }  I  'm  surprised  that  you  should  think  of 
such  a  thing,  Dete,"  said  Barbel  reproachfully. 

"What  do  you  mean.?"  retorted  Dete.  "I  have 
done  my  duty  by  the  child.  What  else  could  I  do 
with  her  now  t  I  don't  think  I  could  take  a  child 
scarcely  five  years  old  to  Frankfurt.  But  where  are 
you  going,  an)rway,  Barbel }  We  are  halfway  up  the 
Aim  now." 


10  HEIDI 

"  I  have  already  reached  the  place  where  I  was 
going.  I  want  to  speak  to  the  goatherd  Peter's  wife. 
She  does  spinning  for  me  in  winter.  So  good-bye, 
Date;  good  luck  to  you!" 

Date  shook  her  companion's  hand  and  stood  still 
while  Barbel  went  into  the  little,  dark  brown  mountain 
hut  standing  a  few  steps  from  the  path  in  a  hollow, 
where  it  was  somewhat  sheltered  from  the  winds.  It 
was  a  good  thing  that  it  was  in  a  little  hollow,  for  it 
looked  so  dilapidated  and  decayed  that  it  would  have 
been  a  dangerous  dwelling  when  the  mighty  south 
wind  swept  across  the  mountain,  making  everything  in 
the  hut,  doors  and  windows,  rattle,  and  all  the  worm- 
eaten  rafters  tremble  and  creak.  On  such  days,  if  the 
hut  had  been  up  on  the  Aim,  it  would  certainly  have 
been  blown  down  into  the  valley. 

Here  dwelt  the  goatherd  Peter,  the  eleven-year-old 
boy  who  every  morning  went  down  to  Dorfii  to  get  the 
goats  and  drive  them  up  on  the  Aim,  to  feed  till  even- 
ing on  the  short,  nourishing  herbs.  Then  Peter  would 
hurry  down  again  with  the  light-footed  animals,  give  a 
shrill  whistle  through  his  fingers  as  soon  as  he  reached 
Dorfli,  and  all  the  owners  would  immediately  come 
and  get  their  goats.  Little  boys  and  girls  came  for  the 
most  part,  for  the  creatures  were  peaceful  and  harm- 
less. All  through  the  summer  it  was  the  only  time  in 
the  day  when  Peter  associated  with  his  fellow-beings ; 
the  rest  of  the  time  he  lived  alone  with  his  goats. 

To  be  sure,  he  had  his  mother  and  blind  grandmother 
at  home  ;  but  he  had  to  go  away  very  early  in  the  mom- 


THE   ALM-UNCLE  11 

ing,  and  come  back  from  Dorfli  late  in  the  evening ;  so 
in  order  to  play  with  the  children  as  long  as  possible, 
he  spent  only  enough  time  at  home  to  swallow  his 
bread  and  milk. 

His  father,  who  was  also  called  Peter  the  goatherd, 
because  he  had  followed  the  same  calling  in  his  earlier 
days,  had  met  with  an  accident  some  years  before  while 
felling  trees.  His  mother,  whose  real  name  was  Bri- 
gitta,  was  called  by  every  one,  for  consistency's  sake, 
"  goatherd  Peter's  wife,"  and  the  blind  grandmother 
was  known  by  old  and  young,  far  and  wide,  simply  by 
the  name  of  Grandmother. 

Dete  waited  full  ten  minutes,  looking  around  in  every 
direction  for  a  glimpse  of  the  children  with  the  goats ; 
but  as  they  were  nowhere  in  sight,  she  climbed  a  little 
higher,  where  she  could  have  a  better  view  of  the  Aim 
down  to  the  foot.  Here  she  peered  first  this  way  and 
then  that,  showing  signs  of  increasing  impatience  both 
in  her  face  and  in  her  movements. 

Meanwhile  the  children  were  coming  along  by  a 
roundabout  way.  Peter  knew  many  spots  where  there 
were  all  sorts  of  good  shrubs  and  bushes  for  his  goats 
to  nibble ;  so  he  frequently  wandered  from  the  path 
with  his  flock.  At  first  the  child  in  her  heavy  garb 
climbed  after  them  with  great  difficulty,  panting  with 
heat  and  discomfort  and  straining  every  nerve.  She  said 
not  a  word,  but  gazed  first  at  Peter,  who  jumped  about 
without  any  difficulty  in  his  bare  feet  and  light  trousers, 
then  at  the  goats  with  their  small,  slender  legs  climbing 
still  more  easily  over  bushes  and  stones  and  steep  crags. 


^ 


12  HEIDI 

Suddenly  the  child  sat  down  on  the  ground  and  in 
great  haste  pulled  off  her  shoes  and  stockings;  then 
she  stood  up  again,  took  off  her  thick,  red  neckerchief, 
unfastened  her  Sunday  frock,  quickly  took  that  off,  and 
began  to  unhook  her  everyday  dress.  This  she  wore 
under  the  other,  to  save  her  Aunt  Dete  the  trouble  of 
carrying  it.  Quick  as  lightning  came  off  also  tn  every- 
day frock,  and  there  the  child  stood  in  her  light  under- 
clothes with  delight,  stretching  her  bare  arms  out  of 
her  short  chemise  sleeves.  Then  she  laid  them  all  in 
a  neat  little  pile,  and  jumped  and  climbed  after  the 
goats  by  Peter's  side,  as  easily  as  any  in  the  whole 
company. 

Peter  had  not  noticed  what  the  child  was  doing 
while  she  remained  behind.  But  when  she  came  run- 
ning after  him  in  this  new  costume  a  grin  began  to 
spread  over  his  face,  and  when  he  looked  back  and 
saw  the  little  pile  of  clothes  lying  on  the  ground  the 
grin  grew  still  broader  and  his  mouth  reached  almost 
from  ear  to  ear ;  but  he  said  nothing. 

The  child,  feeling  so  free  and  light,  began  to  talk 
with  Peter,  and  he  had  all  sorts  of  questions  to  answer, 
for  she  wanted  to  know  how  many  goats  he  had,  where 
he  was  going  with  them,  and  what  he  would  do  when 
he  reached  there. 

Finally  the  children  with  the  goats  approached  the 
hut  and  came  in  sight  of  Aunt  Dete.  She  had  hardly 
caught  a  glimpse  of  the  group  climbing  up  the  moun- 
tain side  when  she  screamed  out  :  — 

"Heidi,   what  have  you  been  doing.!"     What  is  the 


THE  ALM-l^NCLE  13 

matter  with  you  ?  Where  is  your  dress  and  the  other 
one  and  your  neckerchief?  I  bought  you  brand-new 
shoes  on  the  mountain,  and  I  made  you  new  stockings, 
and  they  are  all  gone !  all  gone  !  Heidi,  what  hive  you 
done  with  them  ?     Where  have  you  put  them  all?  " 

The  -child  calmly  pointed  down  the  mountain  and 
said:   '^here!" 

The  aunt  followed  the  direction  of  her  finger.  To 
be  sure,  there  lay  something,  and  on  the  top  of  it  was 
a  red  speck ;  that  was  surely  the  neckerchief. 

"You  careless  girl!  "  cried  the  aunt  in  great  excite- 
ment. "  What  were  you  thinking  about  ?  Why  did 
you  take  everything  off  ?     What  did  you  mean  ? " 

"  I  did  n't  need  them,"  said  the  child,  without  looking 
in  the  least  sorry  for  what  she  had  done. 

"  Oh,  you  careless,  senseless  Heidi !  don't  you  know 
anything? "  the  aunt  went  on,  lamenting  and  scolding. 
"  It  will  take  half  an  hour  for  any  one  to  go  down  there 
again  !  Come,  Peter,  run  back  for  me  and  get  the 
things !  Come,  be  quick,  and  don't  stand  there  star- 
ing at  me  as  if  you  were  nailed  to  the  ground." 

"  I  am  late  already,"  said  Peter  slowly,  and  with 
both  hands  in  his  pockets  stood  still  just  where  he 
was  when  he  heard  the  aunt's  angry  reproaches. 

'-'  If  you  stand  there  staring  like  that,  you  will  not 
get  far,  I  'm  thinking,"  called  out  Aunt  Dete.  "  Come 
here!  you  must  have  something  nice.  Do  you  see 
this?" 

She  held  up  a  new  five-kreutzer  piece,  which  glis- 
tened in  his  eyes.     Suddenly  he  started,  and  with  tre- 


14 


HEIDI 


mendous  leaps  went  the  shortest  way  down  the  Aim, 
and  soon  reached  the  little  pile  of  clothes.  He  picked 
them  up  and  brought  them  back  so  quickly  that  the  aunt 
could  not  help  praising  him,  and  gave  him  his  money 

without  delay. 
Peter  put  it  deep 
down  in  his  pocket, 
and  his  face  lighted 
up  with  a  broad 
grin,  for  such  a 
treasure  did  not 
very  often  fall  to 
his  share. 

"You  may  carry 
the  things  on  up 
to  the  uncle's,  as 
long  as  you  're  go- 
ing that  way,"  con- 
tinued Aunt  Dete, 
while  she  set  about 
climbing  the  steep 
cliff,  which  rose 
high  behind  Peter's 
hut.  The  boy  willingly  undertook  the  task  and  followed 
the  others  with  his  bundle  in  his  left  hand,  and  swinging 
his  stick  in  his  right.  Heidi  and  the  goats  skipped  and 
jumped  along  merrily  by  his  side.  Thus  in  about  three- 
quarters  of  an  hour  the  procession  reached  the  height 
where  on  a  jutting  cliff  stood  the  old  uncle's  hut, 
exposed   to  every  wind,   but  also  accessible  to  every 


THE  ALM-UNCLE  15 

ray  of  sunlight  and  with  a  wide  view  of  the  valley 
below.  Behind  the  hut  stood  three  ancient  fir  trees 
with  long,  thick,  untrimmed  branches.  Farther  back 
the  mountain  with  its  old  gray  crags  rose  higher  still, 
now  displaying  lovely,  fertile  pastures,  now  a  tangle  of 
boulders  and  bushes,  and  finally  surmounted  with  bare, 
steep  cliffs. 

The  uncle  had  made  himself  a  seat  by  the  side  of 
the  hut  looking  down  into  the  valley.  Here  he  sat 
with  his  pipe  in  his  mouth,  his  hands  resting  on  his 
knees,  calmly  watching  the  children,  Aunt  Dete,  and 
the  goats  as  they  came  climbing  up  the  mountain. 
Aunt  Dete  had  been  gradually  left  behind,  and  Heidi 
was  the  first  to  reach  the  hut.  She  went  straight  to  the 
old  man,  held  out  her  hand  to  him,  and  said : — 

"  How  do  you  do,  grandfather  .? " 

"Well,  well,  what  does  this  mean.?"  asked  the  old 
man  roughly,  barely  touching  the  child's  hand  and 
giving  her  a  long,  penetrating  look  from  uiider  his 
bushy  eyebrows.  Heidi  gazed  back  at  him  in  return 
without  once  winking  her  eyes,  for  she  had  never  seen 
any  one  like  her  grandfather,  with  his  long  beard  and 
heavy  gray  eyebrows  meeting  in  the  middle  of  his  fore- 
head like  a  thicket.  In  the  meanwhile  Aunt  Dete 
arrived  with  Peter,  who  stood  still  for  a  time  looking 
on  to  see  what  would  happen. 

"I  wish  you  good  morning,  uncle,"  said  Dete,  step- 
ping up  to  him.  "  I  have  brought  Tobias  and  Adelheid's 
child  to  you.  You  will  hardly  know  her,  for  you  have  n't 
seen  her  since  she  was  a  year  old." 


-y- 


16  HEIDI 

"Well,  what  can  the  child  do  here  with  me?"  asked 
the  old  man  curtly  ;  "and  you  there,"  he  called  out  to 
Peter,  "you  can  go  along  with  your  goats.  You  are 
none  too  early.     Take  mine  too  ! " 

Peter  obeyed  without  delay  and  disappeared,  for  the 
uncle  had  made  it  plain  that  he  was  not  wanted. 

"  She  must  stay  with  you,  uncle,"  said  Dete  in  reply 
to  his  question.  "  I  am  sure  I  have  done  my  duty 
by  her  these  four  years,  and  now  it  is  your  turn  to 
do  what  you  can  for  her." 

"Indeed.-*"  said  the  old  man;  and  his  eyes  flashed 
at  Dete.  "  Suppose  the  child  begins  to  fret  and  whine 
for  you,  as  is  usually  the  case  with  the  unreasonable 
little  things,  what  shall  I  do  with  her } " 

"That  is  your  business,"  retorted  Dete;  "I  am  sure 
no  one  told  me  what  to  do  with  the  little  one  when  it 
was  given  into  my  hands,  only  a  year  old,  and  I  already 
had  enough  to  do  to  take  care  of  myself  and  mother. 
Now  I  must  look  out  for  myself,  and  you  are  next 
of  kin  to  the  child.  If  you  can't  have  her,  do  what 
you  please  with  her ;  you  will  have  to  answer  for  her, 
if  she  comes  to  any  harm.  You  don't  want  to  have 
anything  more  laid  to  your  charge." 

Dete's  conscience  was  not  quite  easy;  she  became 
excited  and  said  more  than  she  had  intended.  The 
uncle  rose  at  her  last  words;  he  gave  her  such  a 
look  that  she  took  several  steps  backward ;  then  he 
stretched  out  his  arm  and  said  imperatively:  — 

"Get  you  gone  down  where  you  came  from,  and 
don't  show  yourself  here  again  very  soon ! " 


THE   ALM-UNCLE  '  17 

Dete  did  not  need  to  be  told  twice. 

"  Good-bye,  then ;  and  good-bye  to  you  too,  Heidi," 
she  said  quickly  and  hurried  down  the  mountain  to 
Dorfli,  as  fast  as  she  could  go,  for  her  anxiety  im- 
pelled her  onward,  as  if  she  were  a  powerful  steam 
engine.  In  Dorfli  many  more  asked  her  about  Heidi ; 
they  all  knew  Dete  well  and  whose  child  she  was,  and 
all  that  had  taken  place.  When  from  every  door  and 
window  came  the  question,  **  Where  is  the  child } 
Dete,  where  have  you  left  the  child .-' "  she  called  back 
with  more  and  more  irritation  :  — 

"  Up  with  the  Aim- Uncle !  Up  with  the  Aim-Uncle, 
I  tell  you  !  " 

She  was  disgusted  because  the  women  everywhere 
exclaimed:  "How  could  you  do  so!"  and  "The  poor 
little  soul!"  and  "Such  a  little  helpless  thing  left  up 
there ! "  and  then  again  and  again :  "  The  poor  little 
soul ! " 

Dete  pushed  on  as  fast  as  she  could,  and  was  glad 
when  she  was  out  of  their  hearing;  she  did  not  feel 
quite  easy  about  the  matter,  for  the  dying  mother  had 
given  the  child  to  her.  But  she  quieted  her  misgivings 
by  saying  to  herself  that  it  would  not  be  long  before 
she  could  do  something  again  for  her,  since  she  would 
be  earning  a  good  deal  of  money ;  so  she  felt  very  glad 
that  she  would  soon  be  in  a  fine  situation,  and  far  away 
from  all  the  people  who  would  speak  to  her  about  the 
matter. 


CHAPTER   II 

AT   THE   GRANDFATHER'S 

After  Dete  had  disappeared,  the  uncle  sat  down 
again  on  the  bench  and  blew  great  clouds  of  smoke 
from  his  pipe,  while  he  kept  his  eyes  fixed  on  the 
ground  without  saying  a  word.  Meanwhile  Heidi  was 
content  to  look  about  her.  She  discovered  the  goats' 
shed  built  near  the  hut  and  peeped  into  it.  It  was 
empty. 

The  child  continued  her  investigations  and  came  to 
the  fir  trees  behind  the  hut.  The  wind  was  blowing 
hard,  and  it  whistled  and  roared  through  the  branches, 
high  up  in  the  tops.  Heidi  stood  still  and  listened. 
When  it  subsided  somewhat  she  went  around  to  the 
other  side  of  the  hut  and  came  back  to  her  grandfather. 
When  she  found  him  in  the  same  place  where  she  had 
left  him,  she  placed  herself  in  front  of  him,  put  her 
hands  behind  her,  and  gazed  at  him.  Her  grandfather 
looked  up. 

"  What  do  you  want  to  do  ? "  he  asked  as  the  child 
continued  standing  in  front  of  him  without  moving. 

"  I  want  to  see  what  you  have  in  the  hut,"  said 
Heidi. 

"  Come  along,  then !  "  and  the  grandfather  rose  and 
started  to  go  into  the  hut. 

i8 


AT  THE    GRANDFATHER'S  19 

"Bring  your  bundle  of  clothes,"  he  said  as  he 
entered. 

"  I  shan't  want  them  any  more,"  replied  Heidi. 

The  old  man  turned  around  and  looked  sharply  at 
the  child,  whose  black  eyes  shone  in  expectation  of 
what  might  be  inside. 

"She's  not  lacking  in  intelligence,"  he  said  half  to 
himself.  "  Why  won't  you  need  them  any  more  .-'  "  he 
asked  aloud. 

"  I  'd  rather  go  like  the  goats,  with  their  swift 
little  legs." 

"  So  you  shall,  but  bring  the  thingsalong,"  commanded 
the  grandfather;  "they  can  be  put  in  the  cupboard." 

Heidi  obeyed.  The  old  man  opened  the  door,  and 
Heidi  followed  him  into  a  good-sized  room,  which 
embraced  the  whole  hut.  In  it  were  a  table  and  a 
chair;  in  one  corner  was  the  grandfather's  bed,  in 
another  the  fireplace  where  hung  the  large  kettle ;  on 
the  other  side,  in  the  wall,  was  a  large  door,  which  the 
grandfather  opened  ;  it  was  the  cupboard.  There  hung 
his  clothes,  and  on  one  shelf  lay  his  shirts,  stockings, 
and  linen ;  on  another  were  plates,  cups,  and  glasses, 
and  on  the  topmost  a  loaf  of  bread,  smoked  meat,  and 
cheese.  Everything  the  Aim-Uncle  owned  and  needed 
for  his  subsistence  was  kept  in  this  closet.  As  soon 
as  he  had  opened  the  door,  Heidi  came  running  with 
her  bundle  and  pushed  it  in,  as  far  back  of  her  grand- 
father's clothes  as  possible,  that  it  might  not  be  easy 
to  find  it  again.  Then  she  looked  carefully  around 
the  rpom  and  said  :  — 


20  HEIDI 

"Where  shall  I  sleep,  grandfather?" 

"  Wherever  you  like,"  he  replied. 

This  was  quite  to  Heidi's  mind.  She  looked  into 
every  nook  and  corner  to  see  where  would  be  the  best 
place  for  her  to  sleep.  In  the  corner  by  her  grand- 
father's bed  stood  a  little  ladder,  which  led  to  the 
hayloft.  Heidi  climbed  this.  There  lay  a  fresh,  fra- 
grant heap  of  hay,  and  through  a  round  window  one 
could  look  far  down  into  the  valley  below. 

"  I  will  sleep  here,"  Heidi  called  down  ;  "  it  is  lovely ! 
Just  come  and  see  how  lovely  it  is  here,  grandfather !  " 

"I  know  all  about  it,"  sounded  from  below. 

"  I  am  going  to  make  a  bed,"  called  out  the  child 
again  as  she  ran  busily  to  and  fro  in  the  loft ;  "  but 
you  must  come  up  here  and  bring  a  sheet,  for  the  bed 
must  have  a  sheet  for  me  to  sleep  on," 

"Well,  well,"  said  the  grandfather  below;  and  after 
a  few  moments  he  went  to  the  cupboard  and  rummaged 
afeout ;  then  he  drew  out  from  under  his  shirts  a  long, 
coarse  piece  of  cloth,  which  might  serve  for  a  sheet. 
He  came  up  the  ladder  and  found  that  a  very  neat 
little  bed  had  been  made  in  the  hayloft ;  the  hay  was 
piled  up  higher  at  one  end  to  form  the  head,  and  it  was 
placed  in  such  a  way  that  one  could  look  from  it  straight 
out  through  the  round  open  window. 

"That  is  made  very  nicely,"  said  the  grandfather; 
"next  comes  the  sheet;  but  wait  a  moment,"  —  and 
he  took  up  a  good  armful  of  hay  and  made  the  bed 
as  thick  again,  in  order  that  the  hard  floor  might  not 
be  felt  through  it;  "there,  now  put  it  on." 


AT  THE    GRANDFATHER'S  21 

Heidi  quickly  took  hold  of  the  sheet,  but  was 
unable  to  lift  it,  it  was  so  heavy  •  however,  this  made 
it  all  the  better  because  the  sh  rp  wisps  of  hay  could 
not  penetrate  the  firm  cloth.  Then  the  two  together 
spread  the  sheet  over  the  hay,  and  where  it  was  too 
broad  or  too  long  Heidi  quickly  tucked  it  under. 
Now  it  appeared  quite  trim  and  neat,  and  Heidi  stood 
looking  at  it  thoughtfully. 

"We  have  forgotten  one  thing,  grandfather,"  she 
said, 

"  What  is  that }  "  he  asked, 

"  The  coverlet ;  when  we  go  to  bed  we  creep  in 
between  the  sheet  and  the  coverlet." 

"  Is  that  so  .''  But  supposing  I  have  n't  any  }  "  asked 
the  old  man. 

"Oh,  then  it's  no  matter,"  said  Heidi  soothingly; 
"we  can  take  more  hay  for  a  coverlet "  ;  and  she  was 
about  to  run  to  the  hay  mow  again,  but  her  grand- 
father prevented  her, 

"Wait  a  moment,"  he  said,  and  went  down  the 
ladder  to  his  own  bed.  Then  he  came  back  and  laid 
a  large,  heavy  linen  bag  on  the  floor, 

"  Is  n't  that  better  than  hay  ?  "  he  asked.  Heidi 
pulled  at  the  bag  with  all  her  might  and  main,  trying 
to  unfold  it,  but  her  little  hands  could  not  manage  the 
heavy  thing.  Her  grandfather  helped,  and  when  it  was 
finally  spread  out  on  the  bed,  it  all  looked  very  neat 
and  comfortable,  and  Heidi,  looking  at  her  new  resting- 
place  admiringly,  said :  — 

"That  is  a  splendid  coverlet,  and  the  whole  bed  is 


22  \  HEIDI 

lovely !  How  I  wish  it  were  night  so  that  I  could  lie 
down  in  it !  " 

"  I  think  we  migh  have  something  to  eat  first,"  said 
the  grandfather.      "  What  do  you  say  ?  " 

In  her  eagerness  over  the  bed,  Heidi  had  forgotten 
everything  else ;  but  now  that  eating  was  suggested 
to  her,  a  great  feeling  of  hunger  rose  within  her,  for 
she  had  taken  nothing  all  day,  except  a  piece  of  bread 
and  a  cup  of  weak  coffee  early  in  the  morning,  and 
afterwards  she  had  made  the  long  journey.  So  Heidi 
heartily  assented  with:  — 

"Yes,   I  think  so  too." 

"Well,  let  us  go  down,  since  we  are  agreed,"  said 
the  old  man  and  followed  close  upon  the  child's  steps. 
He  went  to  the  fireplace,  pushed  the  large  kettle  aside 
and  drew  forward  the  little  one  that  hung  on  the  chain, 
sat  down  on  the  three-legged  wooden  stool  with  the 
round  seat  in  front  of  him  and  kindled  a  bright  fire. 
The  kettle  began  to  boil,  and  the  old  man  held  over  the 
fire  a  large  piece  of  cheese  on  the  end  of  a  long  iron 
fork.  He  moved  it  this  way  and  that,  until  it  was 
golden  yellow  on  all  sides.  Heidi  looked  on  with  eager 
attention.  Suddenly  a  new  idea  came  to  her  mind  ; 
she  jumped  up  and  ran  to  the  cupboard,  and  kept  going 
back  and  forth.  When  the  grandfather  brought  the 
toasted  cheese  to  the  table,  it  was  already  nicely  laid 
with  the  round  loaf  of  bread,  two  plates  and  two  knives, 
for  Heidi  had  noticed  everything  in  the  cupboard,  and 
knew  that  all  would  be  needed  for  the  meal. 

"That  is  right,  to  think  of  doing  something  your- 


AT  THE    GRANDFATHER'S  23 

self,"  said  the  grandfather,  laying  the  cheese  on  the 
bread  and  putting  the  teapot  on  the  table ;  "  but  there 
is  something  still  lacking." 

Heidi  saw  how  invitingly  the  steam  came  out  of  the 
pot  and  ran  quickly  back  to  the  cupboard.  But  there 
was  only  one  little  bowl  there.  Heidi  was  not  long 
perplexed ;  behind  it  stood  two  glasses ;  the  child  im- 
mediately came  back  with  the  bowl  and  glasses  and 
placed  them  on  the  table. 

"Very  good.  You  know  how  to  help  yourself;  but 
where  are  you  going  to  sit }  " 

The  grandfather  himself  was  sitting  in  the  only  chair. 
Heidi  shot  like  an  arrow  to  the  fireplace,  brought  back 
the  little  three-legged  stool  and  sat  down  on  it. 

"  Well,  you  have  a  seat,  sure  enough,  only  it  is  rather 
low,"  said  the  grandfather;  "but  in  my  chair  also  you 
would  be  too  short  to  reach  the  table ;  but  now  you 
must  have  something  anyway,  so  come !  " 

Saying  which  he  rose,  filled  the  little  bowl  with  milk, 
placed  it  on  the  chair,  and  pushed  it  close  to  the  three- 
legged  stool,  so"  that  Heidi  had  a  table  in  front  of  her. 
The  grandfather  laid  a  large  slice  of  bread  and  a  piece 
of  the  golden  cheese  on  the  chair  and  said :  — 

"  Now  eat !  " 

He  seated  himself  on  the  corner  of  the  table  and 
began  his  dinner.  Heidi  grasped  her  bowl  and  drank 
and  drank  without  stopping,  for  all  the  thirst  of  her 
long  journey  came  back  to  her.  Then  she  drew  a  long 
breath  and  set  down  the  bowl. 

"  Do  you  like  the  milk  ?  "  asked  her  grandfather. 


\ 


24 


HEIDI 


"  I  never  tasted  such  good  milk  before,"  answered 
Heidi. 

"  Then  you  must  have  some  more  "  ;  and  the  grand- 
father filled  the  bowl  again  to  the  brim  and  placed  it 
before  the  child,  who  looked  quite  content  as  she  began 


to  eat  her  bread,  after  it  had  been  spread  with  the 
toasted  cheese  soft  as  butter.  The  combination  tasted 
very  good,  with  frequent  drinks  of  milk. 

When  the  meal  was  over,  the  grandfather  went  out 
to  the  goat-shed  to  put  it  in  order,  and  Heidi  watched 
him  closely  as  he  first  swept  it  clean  with  a  broom  and 


AT  THE   GRANDFATHER'S  25 

then  laid  down  fresh  straw  for  the  animals  to  sleep  on. 
Then  he  went  to  his  little  shop,  cut  some  round  sticks, 
shaped  a  board,  made  some  holes  in  it,  put  the  round 
sticks  into  them,  and  suddenly  it  was  a  stool  like  his 
own,  only  much  higher.  Heidi  was  speechless  with 
amazement  as  she  saw  his  work. 

"  What  is  this,  Heidi }  "  asked  the  grandfather. 

"  It  is  a  stool  for  me,  because  it  is  so  high ;  you  made 
it  all  at  once,"  said  the  child,  still  deeply  astonished. 

"  She  knows  what  she  sees  ;  her  eyes  are  in  the  right 
place,"  remarked  the  grandfather  to  himself  as  he  went 
around  the  hut  driving  a  nail  here  and  there ;  then  he 
repaired  something  about  the  door  and  went  from  place 
to  place  with  hammer,  nails,  and  pieces  of  wood,  mend- 
ing and  clearing  away  wherever  it  was  needed.  Heidi 
followed  him  step  by  step  and  watched  him  with  the 
closest  attention,  and  everything  he  did  amused  her 
very  much. 

Evening  was  coming  on.  It  was  beginning  to  blow 
harder  in  the  old  fir  trees,  for  a  mighty  wind  had  sprung 
up  and  was  whistling  and  moaning  through  their  thick 
tops.  It  sounded  so  beautiful  in  Heidi's  ears  and  heart 
that  she  was  quite  delighted,  and  skipped  and  jumped 
under  the  firs  as  if  she  were  experiencing  the  greatest 
pleasure  of  her  life.  The  grandfather  stood  in  the  door- 
way and  watched  the  child. 

A  shrill  whistle  sounded.  Heidi  stopped  her  jump- 
ing, and  the  grandfather  stepped  outside.  Down  from 
above  came  goat  after  goat,  leaping  like  a  hunting  train, 
and  Peter  in  the  midst  of  them,     \yith  a  shout  of  joy 


26  HEIDI 

Heidi  rushed  in  among  the  flock  and  greeted  her  old 
friends  of  the  morning  one  after  the  other. 

When  they  reached  the  hut,  they  all  stood  still,  and 
two  lovely  slender  goats  —  one  white,  the  other  brown 
—  came  out  from  the  others  to  the  grandfather  and 
licked  his  hands,  in  which  he  held  some  salt  to  welcome 
them.  This  he  did  each  evening.  Peter  disappeared 
with  his  flock.  Heidi  gently  stroked  first  one  goat  and 
then  the  other  and  ran  around  them  to  stroke  them  on 
the  other  side ;  she  was  perfectly  delighted  with  the 
little  creatures. 

"  Are  they  ours,  grandfather  }  Are  they  both  ours } 
Will  they  go  into  the  shed  }  Will  they  stay  with  us 
always  }  "  asked  Heidi,  one  question  following  the  other 
in  her  delight.  When  the  goats  had  finished  licking 
their  salt,  the  old  man  said  :  — 

"  Go  and  bring  out  your  little  bowl  and  the 
bread." 

Heidi  obeyed  and  came  back  at  once.  The  grand- 
father milked  the  goat  and  filled  the  bowl  and  cut  off  a 
piece  of  bread,  saying  :  — 

"  Now  eat  your  supper  and  then  go  up  to  bed  !  Your 
Aunt  Dete  left  a  bundle  for  you;  your  nightgowns  and 
other  things  are  in  it.  You  will  find  it  downstairs  in 
the  closet  if  you  need  it.  I  must  attend  to  the  goats 
now ;  so  sleep  well ! " 

"  Good-night,  grandfather  !  Good-night  —  what  are 
their  names,  grandfather .-'  what  are  their  names  ? " 
cried  the  child,  running  after  the  old  man  and  the 
goats  as  they  disappeared  in  the  shed. 


AT  THE    GRANDFATHER'S  27 

"The  white  one  is  named  Schwanli^  and  the  brown 
one  Barli,"^  answered  the  grandfather. 

"  Good-night,  Schwanli !  good-night,  Barli !  "  called 
Heidi  at  the  top  of  her  voice.  Then  Heidi  sat  down 
on  the  bench  and  ate  her  bread  and  drank  her  milk ; 
but  the  strong  wind  almost  blew  her  off  from  her  seat ; 
so  she  finished  hastily,  then  went  in  and  climbed  up  to 
her  bed,  in  which  she  immediately  fell  asleep  and  slept 
as  soundly  and  well  as  if  she  had  been  in  the  loveliest 
bed  of  some  royal  princess. 

Not  long  after,  even  before  it  was  wholly  dark,  the 
grandfather  also  went  to  bed ;  for  he  was  always  up 
with  the  sun,  and  it  came  climbing  over  the  mountain 
very  early  in  the  summer  time.  In  the  night  the  wind 
blew  with  such  force  that  its  blasts  made  the  whole 
hut  tremble,  and  every  rafter  creaked.  It  howled  and 
groaned  down  the  chimney  like  voices  in  distress,  and 
outside  in  the  fir  trees  it  raged  with  such  fury  that  now 
and  then  a  bough  was  broken  off. 

In  the  middle  of  the  night  the  grandfather  rose  and 
said  half  aloud  to  himself  :  — 

"  She  may  be  afraid." 

He  climbed  the  ladder  and  went  to  Heidi's  bedside. 
The  moon  outside  shone  brightly  in  the  sky  for  a  mo- 
ment and  then  disappeared  behind  the  driving  clouds, 
and  everything  grew  dark.  Then  the  moonlight  came 
again  brightly  through  the  round  opening  and  fell 
directly  on  Heidi's  couch.     Her  cheeks  were  fiery  red 

^  Schwanli  =  little  swan. 
2  Barli  =  little  bear. 


28  HEIDI 

as  she  slept  under  the  heavy  coverlet,  and  she  lay  per- 
fectly calm  and  peaceful  on  her  little  round  arm.  She 
must  have  been  dreaming  happy  dreams,  for  a  look  of 
contentment  was  on  her  face.  The  grandfather  gazed 
long  at  the  sweetly  sleeping  child  until  the  moon  went 
behind  a  cloud  again  and  it  was  dark.  Then  he  went 
back  to  his  own  bed. 


CHAPTER    III 

IN    THE    PASTURE 

Heidi  was  awakened  early  in  the  morning  by  a  loud 
whistle ;  and  when  she  opened  her  eyes,  a  flood  of  sun- 
shine was  pouring  through  the  round  window  on  her  bed 
and  the  hay  close  by,  so  that  everything  about  shone 
like  gold.  Heidi  looked  around  her  in  amazement  and 
did  not  know  where  she  was. 

Then  she  heard  her  grandfather's  deep  voice  outside, 
and  everything  came  back  to  her  mind  —  where  she  had 
come  from,  and  that  now  she  was  up  on  the  Aim  with 
her  grandfather  and  no  longer  with  old  Ursel.  Ursel 
was  always  cold,  so  that  she  liked  to  sit  by  the  kitchen 
fire  or  the  stove  in  her  chamber.  Heidi  had  been  obliged 
to  stay  very  near,  so  that  the  old  woman  could  see  where 
she  was,  because  she  was  deaf  and  could  not  hear  her. 
This  had  often  been  very  irksome  to  Heidi,  who  longed 
to  run  outside. 

So  she  was  very  glad  when  she  awoke  in  her  new 
home  and  remembered  how  many  strange  things  she 
had  seen  the  day  before  and  what  she  would  see  again 
that  day,  especially  Schwanli  and  Barli. 

Heidi  jumped  quickly  out  of  bed  and  in  a  few  minutes 
had  put  on  all  that  she  wore  the  day  before  ;  it  was  very 
little.     Then  she  climbed  down  the  ladder  and  ran  out 

29 


-:%.■:.•'*, 


30  HEIDI 

in  front  of  the  hut.  There  already  stood  the  goatherd 
Peter  with  his  flock,  and  the  grandfather  was  bringing 
Schwanli  and  Barli  out  of  the  shed  to  join  the  other 
goats.  Heidi  ran  up  to  him  to  say  good-morning  to  him 
and  the  goats. 

"Would  you  like  to  go  to  the  pasture,  too  .-*  "  asked 
the  grandfather.  Heidi  was  pleased  with  the  idea  and 
jumped  for  joy. 

"  But  first  wash  and  be  clean,  or  else  the  sun  will 
laugh  at  you  when  it  is  shining  so  brightly  up  there 
and  sees  that  you  are  dirty;  see,  everything  is  ready 
for  you." 

The  grandfather  pointed  to  a  large  tub  full  of  water 
standing  before  the  door  in  the  sunshine.  Heidi  ran 
to  it  and  splashed  and  rubbed  until  she  was  all  shining. 
Meanwhile  the  grandfather  went  into  the  hut  and  called 
to  Peter :  — 

"  Come  here,  general  of  the  goats,  and  bring  your 
haversack  with  you." 

Peter,  surprised,  obeyed  the  call  and  brought  along 
the  little  bag  in  which  he  carried  his  meagre  dinner. 

"  Open  it,"  said  the  old  man ;  and  he  put  in  a  large 
piece  of  bread  and  an  equally  large  piece  of  cheese. 
Peter  opened  his  round  eyes  as  wide  as  possible  in  his 
amazement,  for  both  pieces  were  half  as  large  again  as 
what  he  had  brought  for  his  own  dinner. 

"  Now  in  goes  the  little  bowl,"  continued  the  uncle, 
"  for  the  child  cannot  drink  the  way  you  do,  right  from 
the  goat ;  she  does  n't  know  how.  Milk  two  bowlsful 
at  noon  for  her,  as  she  is  to  go  with  you  and  stay  until 


IN  THE  PASTURE  31 

you  come  down  again ;  take  care  that  she  does  n't  fall 
over  the  rocks  ;  do  you  hear?  " 

Heidi  came  running  up. 

"Can  the  sun  laugh  at  me  now,  grandfather?"  she 
asked  eagerly.  In  her  fear  of  the  sun  she  had  rubbed 
her  face,  neck,  and  arms  so  vigorously  with  the  coarse 
towel  her  grandfather  had  hung  by  the  water  tub 
that  she  looked  as  red  as  a  lobster.  Her  grandfather 
smiled. 

"  No  ;  now  he  has  nothing  to  laugh  at,"  he  admitted  ; 
"  but  do  you  know  to-night,  when  you  come  home,  you 
must  go  in  all  over,  like  a  fish  ;  for  after  running  about 
like  the  goats  you  will  have  black  feet.  Now  you  can 
march  along." 

So  she  went  merrily  up  the  Aim.  The  wind  in  the 
night  had  blown  away  the  last  clouds ;  the  sky  was 
everywhere  a  deep  blue,  and  in  the  midst  stood  the 
sun,  shining  on  the  green  mountain  ;  all  the  blue  and 
yellow  flowers  opened  their  calyxes  and  looked  up  with 
gladness.  Heidi  jumped  here  and  there  and  shouted 
for  joy;  for  there  were  whole  troops  of  delicate  prim- 
roses together,  and  yonder  it  was  blue  with  gentians, 
and  everywhere  in  the  sunshine  smiled  and  nodded  the 
tender-leaved  golden  rock-roses.  Heidi  was  so  charmed 
by  all  these  glistening,  nodding  flowers  that  she  entirely 
forgot  the  goats  and  even  Peter.  She  ran  far  ahead 
and  then  off  on  one  side,  for  it  shone  red  here  and  yel- 
low there  and  enticed  her  in  every  direction.  Wherever 
she  went  she  plucked  quantities  of  the  flowers  and  put 
them  into  her  apron,  for  she  wanted  to  carry  them  all 


32  HEIDI 

home  and  put  them  into  the  hay  in  her  sleeping  room, 
that  it  might  look  there  as  it  did  here. 

So  Peter  had  to  look  everywhere  ;  and  his  round  eyes, 
which  did  not  move  quickly  from  one  place  to  another, 
had  more  work  than  they  could  well  manage,  for  the 
goats  were  as  bad  as  Heidi.  They  ran  hither  and  thither, 
and  he  was  obliged  to  whistle  and  shout  and  swing 
his  rod  continually  in  order  to  drive  all  the  stragglers 
together. 

"Where  have  you  gone  now,  Heidi.?"  he  called 
almost    angrily. 

"  Here,"  sounded  from  some  indefinite  place.  Peter 
could  see  no  one,  for  Heidi  was  sitting  on  the  ground 
behind  a  knoll,  which  was  thickly  covered  with  fragrant 
wild  flowers.  The  whole  air  around  was  filled  with  the 
sweet  odor,  and  Heidi  had  never  breathed  anything  so 
exquisite  before.  She  sat  down  among  the  flowers  and 
drew  in  long  breaths  of  the  perfume. 

"Come  along!"  called  Peter  again.  "You  must  not 
fall  down  over  the  cliffs  ;  the  uncle  charged  me  not  to 
let  you." 

"  Where  are  the  cliffs  .?  "  asked  Heidi  without  stirring 
from  the  place,  for  every  breath  of  wind  brought  the 
sweet  odor  to  the  child  with  increasing  charm. 

"  Up  there,  'way  up  ;  we  have  still  a  long  way  to  go ; 
so  come  along  now  !  And  up  at  the  very  top  sits  the 
old  robber-bird  croaking." 

That  availed.  Heidi  immediately  jumped  up  and  ran 
to  Peter  with  her  apron  full  of  flowers. 

"You  have  enough  now,"  he  said,  when  they  were 


IN   THE  PASTURE  ZZ 

once  more  climbing  together  ;  "  besides,  you  '11  stay  here 
forever,  and  if  you  pick  them  all  you  won't  have  any 
to-morrow." 

The  last  reason  convinced  Heidi ;  besides,  her  apron 
was  already  so  full  that  there  was  hardly  room  for  more, 
and  there  must  be  some  left  for  to-morrow.  So  she 
went  along  with  Peter ;  and  the  goats  behaved  better 
and  hurried  along  without  delay,  for  they  smelt  the  good 
herbage  in  the  distance  on  the  high  pasture  land. 

The  pasture  where  Peter  usually  went  with  his  goats 
for  the  day  lay  at  the  foot  of  the  high  cliff.  The  lower 
part  of  this  was  covered  with  bushes  and  fir  trees,  but 
it  rose  toward  heaven  quite  bald  and  steep.  On  one 
side  of  the  mountain  there  were  deep  chasms.  The 
grandfather  was  quite  right  in  warning  Peter  about 
them. 

When  Peter  reached  this  spot  on  the  heights,  he 
took  off  his  bag  and  laid  it  carefully  in  a  little  hollow 
in  the  ground.  He  knew  that  the  wind  often  rushed 
across  in  strong  gusts,  and  he  did  not  wish  to  see  his 
precious  possessions  roll  down  the  mountain:  Then  he 
stretched  himself  out  on  the  ground  in  the  sunny  pas- 
ture to  rest  from  the  exertion  of  climbing. 

In  the  mean  time  Heidi  had  taken  off  her  apron, 
rolled  it  up  tightly  with  the  flowers  inside,  and  laid  it 
close  to  the  lunch  bag.  Then  she  sat  down  beside 
Peter  and  looked  around  her.  The  valley  lay  far  below 
in  the  full  morning  sunshine.  In  front  of  her  Heidi 
saw  a  great  wide  field  of  snow,  stretching  high  up  into 
the  deep  blue  sky ;  on  the  left  stood  an  enormous  mass 


34 


HEIDI 


of  rock,  on^  each  side  of  which  a  higher  tower  of  bald, 
jagged  crags  rose  into  the  azure  and  looked  very  sternly 
down  on  Heidi.  The  child  sat  as  still  as  a  mouse  ;  every- 
where there  was  a  great,  deep  stillness ;  only  the  wind 
passed  very  softly  and  gently  over  the  tender  bluebells 


and  the  radiant  golden  rock-roses,  which  were  every- 
where  gaily  nodding  to  and  fro  on  their  slender  stems. 
Peter  had  gone  to  sleep  after  his  exertion,  and  the  goats 
were  climbing  among  the  bushes. 

She  drank  in  the  golden  sunlight,  the  fresh  air,  the 
delicate  fragrance  of  the  flowers,  and  desired  nothing 
more  than  to  remain  there  forever.    A  good  while  passed 


IN   THE  PASTURE  35 

in  this  way,  and  Heidi  had  gazed  so  often  and  so  long 
at  the  lofty  mountain  tops  that  it  seemed  as  if  they  all 
had  faces  and  were  gazing  down  quite  familiarly  at  her, 
like  good  friends. 

Then  she  heard  above  her  a  loud,  shrill  screaming 
and  croaking,  and  as  she  looked  up  into  the  air  the 
largest  bird  she  had  ever  seen  in  her  life  was  flying 
around  on  wide,  outstretched  wings  and  coming  back 
in  wider  circles  and  screaming  loud  and  piercingly  over 
her  head. 

"  Peter !  Peter !  Wake  up  !  "  cried  Heidi  at  the  top 
of  her  voice.  "  See,  there  is  the  robber-bird  !  See ! 
see!" 

Peter  jumped  up  at  the  call  and  looked  with  Heidi  at 
the  bird,  which  was  flying  higher  and  higher  in  the  blue 
sky.     Finally  it  disappeared  over  the  gray  cliffs. 

"Where  has  he  gone  now.''"  asked  Heidi,  who  had 
watched  the  bird  with  eager  scrutiny. 

"  Home  to  his  nest,"  was  Peter's  answer. 

"  Is  his  home  'way  up  there  ?  Oh,  how  lovely  to  be  so 
high  up  !    Why  does  he  scream  so  .''  "  asked  Heidi  again. 

"Because  he  can't  help  it,"  explained  Peter. 

"  Let  us  climb  up  there  and  see  where  his  home  is,"- 
proposed  Heidi. 

"  Oh  !  oh  !  oh  !  "  burst  out  Peter,  uttering  each  excla- 
mation with  more  vehement  disapproval ;  "no  goat  can 
get  there,  and  the  uncle  said  you  must  not  fall  over 
the  cliff." 

Then  Peter  suddenly  began  such  a  whistling  and  call- 
ing that  Heidi  did  not  know  what  was  going  to  happen  ; 


36  HEIDI 

but  the  goats  must  have  understood  the  sound,  for  one 
after  another  they  came  jumping  down  until  the  whole 
flock  was  assembled  on  the  green  slope,  some  nibbling 
the  spicy  stalks,  others  running  to  and  fro,  and  still 
others  amusing  themselves  by  butting  one  another  with 
their  horns. 

Heidi  jumped  up  and  ran  around  among  the  goats. 
It  was  new  and  indescribably  amusing  to  her  to  see  how 
the  little  creatures  leaped  about  and  played  together, 
and  Heidi  made  thepersonal  acquaintance  of  each,  for 
every  one  had  a  quite  distinct  individuality  and  its  own 
peculiar  ways. 

Meanwhile  Peter  had  brought  out  the  bag  and  nicely 
arranged  all  four  of  the  pieces  of  bread  and  cheese  on 
the  ground  in  a  square,  the  larger  pieces  on  Heidi's 
side,  the  smaller  ones  on  his  side ;  he  knew  just  how 
many  he  had.  Then  he  took  the  little  bowl  and  milked 
sweet,  fresh  milk  from  Schwanli  into  it  and  placed  it 
in  the  middle  of  the  square.  Then  he  called  Heidi, 
but  he  had  to  call  longer  for  her  than  for  the  goats, 
because  she  was  so  interested  and  pleased  with  the 
varied  gamboling  and  frolicking  of  her  new  playmates 
that  she  saw  and  heard  nothing  else. 

But  Peter  knew  how  to  make  himself  understood. 
He  called  till  it  made  the  rocks  above  echo ;  and  Heidi 
appeared,  and  the  table  he  had  laid  looked  so  inviting 
that  she  danced  around  it  for  joy. 

"  Stop  jumping;  it  is  time  to  eat,"  said  Peter;  "sit 
down  and  begin." 

Heidi  sat  down. 


IN  THE  PASTURE  37 

"Is  the  milk  mine?  "  she  asked,  contemplating  with 
satisfaction  the  neat  square  and  the  bowl  in  the 
middle. 

"Yes,"  answered  Peter,  "and  the  two  large  pieces  of 
bread  and  cheese  are  yours,  too;  and  when  you  have 
drunk  all  the  milk,  you  can  have  another  bowlful  from 
Schwanli,  and  then  it  is  my  turn." 

"  And  where  will  you  get  your  milk  t "  Heidi  wanted 
to  know. 

"From  my  goat  —  from  Schnecke.  Go  to  eating!  " 
commanded  Peter  once  more. 

Heidi  began  with  her  milk,  and  as  soon  as  she  set 
down  her  empty  bowl  Peter  rose  and  filled  it  again. 
Heidi  broke  some  of  her  bread  into  it ;  the  rest,  a  piece 
still  larger  than  all  Peter's  bread,  she  handed  over  to 
him,  with  all  her  large  portion  of  cheese,  and  said :  — 

"  You  may  have  that.   "  I  have  enough." 

Peter  looked  at  Heidi  in  speechless  amazement,  for 
never  in  his  life  had  he  been  able  to  say  such  a  thing 
or  give  anything  away.  He  hesitated  a  little,  for  he 
could  not  really '  believe  that  Heidi  was  in  earnest. 
She  persisted  in  offering  the  bread  and  cheese,  and 
when  he  did  not  take  it,  she  laid  it  down  on  his  knee. 
Then  he  saw  that  she  meant  it  for  him,  seized  the 
prize,  nodded  his  thanks,  and  then  made  the  most 
satisfactory  dinner  of  his  goatherd  life.  Meantime 
Heidi  watched  the  goats. 

"  What  are  their  names,  Peter  ?  "  she  asked. 

He  knew  them  all  well  enough  and  could  keep  them 
in  his  head  all  the  better  because  he  had  little  else  to 


38  HEIDI    ^ 

store  away  there.  So  he  began  and  without  hesitation 
named  one  after  the  other,  pointing  to  each  one  as  he 
did  so.  Heidi  listened  with  the  closest  attention  to  his 
explanation,  and  before  long  she  could  distinguish  them 
from  one  another  and  call  each  by  name ;  for  they  all 
had  their  peculiarities,  which  any  one  might  remember, 
but  it  was  necessary  to  look  at  them  closely,  and  she 
did  this. 

There  was  the  big  Tiirk  with  his  powerful  horns. 
He  was  always  trying  to  butt  all  the  others,  and  if  he 
came  near,  most  of  them  ran  away  and  would  have 
nothing  to  do  with  their  rough  comrade.  The  brave 
Distelfinck,  a  slender,  nimble  little  goat,  was  the  only 
one  that  did  not  avoid  him,  but  often  ran  at  him  three 
or  four  times  in  succession  so  swiftly  and  skilfully  that 
the  big  Turk  would  stand  still  in  astonishment  and 
make  no  further  attack  ;  for  the  Distelfinck  looked  very 
warlike  and  had  sharp  horns. 

There  was  the  little  white  Schneehopli,  always  bleat- 
ing so  touchingly,  so  beseechingly,  that  Heidi  ran  to 
her  again-  and  again  and  put  her  arms  around  her  head 
to  comfort  her.  But  now  the  child  hurried  to  her 
once  more,  for  her  mournful  young  voice  was  again 
raised  in  appeal.  Heidi  threw  her  arm  around  the  little 
creature's  neck  and  asked  quite  sympathetically:  — 

"  What  is  the  matter,  Schneehopli  1  Why  do  you 
cry  so  .■*  " 

The  goat  trustingly  pressed  close  to  Heidi's  side  and 
became  perfectly  quiet. 

Peter  called   out  from  where  he  was   sitting,  with 


IN  THE  PASTURE  39 

frequent  interruptions  while  he  took  a  bite  and  a 
swallow :  — 

"  She  does  so  because  the  old  one  does  n't  come  with 
her  any  more.  They  sold  her  and  sent  her  to  Mayen- 
feld  day  before  yesterday ;  so  she  does  n't  come  up  on 
the  Aim  any  longer." 

"  Who  is  the  old  one  ?  "  asked  Heidi. 

"  Why,  the  mother,  of  course,"  was  the  reply. 

"  Where  is  the  grandmother  ?  "  asked  Heidi  again. 

"Hasn't  any." 

"  And  the  grandfather  > " 

"Hasn't  any." 

"You  poor  Schneehopli,"  said  Heidi,  drawing  the 
little  creature  tenderly  towards  her.  "  Don't  cry  so 
any  more,  for,  you  see,  I  will  come  with  you  every  day, 
and  then  you  won't  be  alone ;  and  if  you  want  anything, 
you  can  come  to  me." 

Schneehopli  rubbed  her  head  contentedly  against 
Heidi's  shoulder  and  bleated  no  more. 

By  far  the  prettiest  and  cleanest  of  the  goats  were 
Schwanli  and  Barli,  who  were  decidedly  superior  in 
their  behavior,  and  usually  went  their  own  way ;  they 
especially  avoided  the  obtrusive  Tiirk  and  treated  him 
with  contempt. 

The  animals  had  begun  to  climb  up  to  the  bushes 
again,  each  one  after  his  own  fashion :  some  leaping 
carelessly  over  everything,  others  cautiously  seeking 
out  the  good  herbs  as  they  went  along,  while  the  Tiirk 
tried  his  horns  here  and  there  —  first  in  one  place  and 
then  in  another. 


40  HEIDI 

Schwanli  and  Barli  climbed  prettily  and  gracefully, 
and  whenever  they  found  fine  bushes,  there  they  sta- 
tioned themselves  and  browsed  on  them.  Heidi  stood 
with  her  hands  behind  her  back,  watching  them  all  with 
the  closest  attention. 

"Peter,"  she  said  to  the  boy,  who  had  thrown  him- 
self down  again  on  the  ground,  "the  prettiest  of  them 
all  are  Schwanli  and  Barli." 

"Of  course  they  are,"  was  the  reply.  "The  Aim- 
Uncle  brushes  and  washes  them  and  gives  them  salt  and 
has  the  best  shed." 

Suddenly  Peter  jumped  up  and  fairly  leaped  after  the 
goats.  Heidi  ran  after  him  ;  she  felt  that  something 
must  have  happened,  and  she  could  not  remain  behind. 
Peter  ran  through  the  midst  of  the  goats  to  the  side  of 
the  mountain,  where  the  rocks  descended  steep  and  bare 
far  below,  and  where  a  careless  goat,  going  near,  might 
easily  fall  over  and  break  all  its  bones.  He  had  seen 
the  venturesome  Distelfinck  jumping  along  in  that  direc- 
tion ;  he  reached  there  just  in  time,  for  at  that  instant 
the  little  goat  came  to  the  very  edge  of  the  precipice. 
Just  as  it  was  falling,  Peter  flung  himself  down  on  the 
ground  and  managed  to  seize  one  of  its  legs  and  hold 
it  fast,  Distelfinck  bleated  with  anger  and  surprise,  to 
be  held  so  by  his  leg  and  hindered  from  continuing  his 
merry  course,  and  struggled  obstinately  onward.  Peter 
screamed:  "Heidi,  help  me!"  for  he  couldn't  get  up 
and  was  almost  pulling  off  Distelfinck's  leg.  Heidi  was 
already  there  and  instantly  understood  their  sorry  plight. 
She  quickly  pulled  up  from  the  ground  some  fragrant 


IN  THE  PASTURE  41 

herbs  and  held  them  under  Distelfinck's  nose  and  said 
soothingly :  — 

"Come,  come,  Distelfinck,  you  must  be  sensible! 
See,  you  might  fall  off  and  break  your  bones,  and  that 
would  give  you  frightful  pain." 

The  goat  quickly  turned  around  and  eagerly  nibbled 
the  herbs  from  Heidi's  hand.  Meanwhile  Peter  had 
succeeded  in  getting  on  his  feet  and  had  seized  the 
cord  which  held  the  bell  around  Distelfinck's  neck. 
Heidi  seized  it  on  the  opposite  side,  and  the  two 
together  led  the  runaway  back  to  the  peacefully  feed- 
ing flock. 

When  Peter  had  the  goat  in  safety  once  more,  he 
raised  his  rod  to  beat  him  soundly  as  a  punishment,  and 
Distelfinck  timidly  drew  back,  for  he  saw  what  was 
going  to  happen.     But  Heidi  cried  :  — 

"  No,  Peter  !  no,  you  must  not  beat  him  !  See  how 
frightened  he  is  !  " 

"He  deserves  it,"  snarled  Peter  and  was  going  to 
strike  the  goat.  But  Heidi  seized  his  arm  and  cried 
indignantly :  — 

"  You  shall  not  do  it ;  it  will  hurt  him !  Let  him 
alone ! " 

Peter  looked  in  astonishment  at  the  commanding 
Heidi,  whose  black  eyes  snapped  at  him.  He  reluc- 
tantly dropped  his  rod. 

'•He  can  go  if  you  will  give  me  some  of  your  cheese 
again  to-morrow,"  said  Peter,  yielding;  for  he  wanted 
some  compensation  for  his  fright. 

"  You  may  have  it  all  —  the  whole  piece  —  to-morrow 


42  HEIDI 

and  every  day ;  I  do  not  want  it,"  said  Heidi  with 
ready  assent ;  "  and  I  will  give  you  a  good  part  of  my 
bread,  too,  as  I  did  to-day.  But  then  you  must  never, 
never  beat  Distelfinck,  nor  Schneehopli,  nor  any  of  the 
goats." 

"  It 's  all  the  same  to  me,"  remarked  Peter ;  and 
this  was  as  good  as  a  promise  with  him.  Then  he  let 
the  offender  go,  and  the  happy  Distelfinck  leaped  high 
in  the  air  and  then  bounded  back  into  the  flock. 

Thus  the  day  had  imperceptibly  passed  away,  and  the 
sun  was  just  ready  to  go  down  behind  the  mountains. 
Heidi  sat  down  on  the  ground  again  and  silently  gazed 
at  the  bluebells  and  the  rock-roses  glowing  in  the  even- 
ing light ;  and  all  the  grass  seemed  tinted  with  gold, 
and  the  cliffs  above  began  to  gleam  and  sparkle.  Sud- 
denly Heidi  jumped  up  and  exclaimed  :  — 

"  Peter  !  Peter  !  it 's  on  fire  !  It 's  on  fire  !  All  the 
mountains  are  burning,  and  the  big  snow  field  over 
there  is  on  fire  and  the  sky !  Oh,  see !  see !  The 
high  cliff  is  all  burning  !  Oh,  the  beautiful  fiery  snow ! 
Peter,  get  up  !  See  !  the  fire  reaches  up  to  the  robber- 
bird  !  Look  at  the  rocks  !  See  the  fir  trees  !  Every- 
thing, everything  is  on  fire  !  " 

"  It 's  always  so,"  said  Peter  good-naturedly,  peeling 
the  bark  from  his  rod  ;  "  but  it  is  no  fire." 

"What  is  it,  then  }  "  asked  Heidi,  running  back  and 
forth  in  order  to  look  on  every  side ;  for  she  could  not 
see  enough,  it  was  so  beautiful  everywhere. 

"  What  is  it,  Peter }  what  is  it  .-*  "  cried  Heidi  again. 

"It  comes  so  of  itself,"  explained  Peter. 


IN   THE  PASTURE  43 

"Oh,  see!  see!"  cried  Heidi  in  great  excitement; 
'<  suddenly  it  grows  rosy  red  !  Look  at  the  snow  and  the 
high,  pointed  rocks  !     What  are  their  names,  Peter?  " 

"  Mountains  don't  have  names,"  he  replied. 

"  Oh,  how  lovely  I"  See  the  snow  all  rosy  red  !  And 
oh,  on  the  rocks  above  there  are  ever  and  ever  so  many 
roses  !  Oh,  now  they  are  turning  gray  I  Oh  !  Oh  I 
Now  it  is  all  gone  !  It  is  all  gone,  Peter  !  "  And  Heidi 
sat  down  on  the  ground  and  looked  as  distressed  as  if 
everything  was  really  coming  to  an  end. 

"  It  will  be  just  the  same  again  to-morrow,"  explained 
Peter,     "  Get  up  !     We  must  go  home  now." 

Peter  whistled  and  called  the  goats  together,  and 
they  started  on  the  homeward  journey. 

"  Will  it  be  like  that  every  day  —  every  day  when  we 
go  to  the  pasture  .''  "  asked  Heidi,  listening  eagerly  for 
some  decided  assurance  as  she  walked  down  the  moun- 
tain by  Peter's  side. 

"  Usually,"  was  the  reply. 

"  But  really  to-morrow  again } "  she  wanted  to 
know. 

"  Yes ;  yes,  to-morrow,  certainly  ! "  assured  Peter. 

Then  Heidi  was  happy  once  more,  but  she  had  re- 
ceived so  many  impressions,  and  so  many  things  were 
going  around  in  her  mind,  that  she  was  perfectly  silent 
until  they  reached  the  hut  and  saw  her  grandfather. 
He  was  sitting  under  the  fir  trees,  where  he  had  also 
made  a  seat  and  was  in  the  habit  of  waiting  in  the  even- 
ing for  his  goats,  which  came  down  in  this  direction. 

Heidi  ran  straight  up  to  him,  followed  by  Schwanli 


44  ^  HEIDI 

and  Barli;  for  the  goats  knew  their  master  and  their 
shed.     Peter  called  out  to  Heidi :  — 

"  Come  again  to-morrow !  Good-night !  "  He  was 
pleased  to  have  Heidi  go  with  him. 

Heidi  darted  back,  gave  Peter  her  hand,  and  assured 
him  that  she  would  accompany  him  again ;  then  she 
sprang  into  the  midst  of  the  departing  flock,  threw  her 
arms  once  more  around  Schneehopli's  neck,  and  said 
confidingly :  — 

"  Sleep  well,  Schneehopli,  and  remember  that  I  will 
go  with  you  again  to-morrow  and  that  you  must  never 
bleat  so  mournfully  again." 

Schneehopli  seemed  pleased  and  looked  thankfully 
into  Heidi's  face  and  then  leaped  gaily  after  the  other 
goats. 

Heidi  came  back  under  the  fir  trees. 

"  Oh,  grandfather,  it  was  so  beautiful!"  she  exclaimed 
even  before  she  had  reached  him  —  "  the  fire  and  the 
roses  on  the  cliffs  and  the  blue  and  yellow  flowers  ;  and 
see  what  I  have  brought  you  !  " 

Whereupon  Heidi  shook  all  her  wealth  of  flowers  out 
of  her  folded  apron  in  front  of  her  grandfather.  But 
what  a  sight  the  poor  little  flowers  made !  Heidi  no 
longer  recognized  them.  They  were  all  like  nay,  and 
not  a  single  cup  was  open. 

**  Oh,  grandfather,  what  is  the  matter  with  them  .-• " 
cried  Heidi,  quite  shocked.  "  They  were  not  like  that ; 
why  do  they  look  so  now  }  " 

"  They  like  to  stand  out  in  the  sunshine  and  not  shut 
up  in  your  apron,"  said  the  grandfather. 


IN  THE  PASTURE  45 

"Then  I  iHU  never  bring  any  more  home.  But, 
grandfather,  what  made  the  robber-bird  scream  so  ? " 
asked  Heidi  urgently. 

"  You  must  jump  into  the  water  now,  while  I  go  to 
the  shed  and  fetch  the  milk  ;  afterwards  we  will  go  into 
the  house  together  and  have  supper.  Then  I  will  tell 
you  about  it." 

So  it  was ;  and  later,  when  Heidi  sat  on  her  high 
stool  before  her  little  bowl  of  milk,  next  her  grandfather, 
she  again  asked  the  question  :  — 

"  Why  did  the  robber-bird  keep  croaking  and  scream- 
ing so,  grandfather .-'  " 

"He  is  mocking  at  the  people  down  below,  because  so 
many  sit  together  in  the  villages  and  make  one  another 
wicked.  So  he  mocks  at  them  :  *  It  would  be  much  bet- 
ter for  you  to  leave  one  another  and  let  each  go  his  own 
way  and  climb  up  to  some  mountain-top,  as  I  do  ! '  " 

The  grandfather  spoke  these  words  so  wildly  that  the 
robber-bird's  screaming  came  back  to  Heidi's  mind  still 
more  impressively. 

"Why  have  the  mountains  no  names,  grandfather.-'  " 
asked  Heidi  again. 

"They  have  names,"  he  replied;  "and  if  you  can 
describe  one  to  me  sa  that  I  can  recognize  it,  I  will  tell 
you  what  it  is  called." 

Then  Heidi  described  the  rocky  mountain,  with  its 
two  high  towers,  just  as  she  had  seen  it,  and  the  grand- 
father, well  pleased,  said  :  — 

"  Very  good  !  I  know  it ;  it  is  called  Falkniss.^  Did 
you  see  any  more  .>'  " 

^  Falcon's  nest. 


46  HEIDI 

Then  Heidi  described  the  mountain  witli  the  big  snow 
field,  which  had  been  on  fire,  then  turned  rose  color, 
and  then  suddenly  grew  pale  and  wan. 

"I  know  that,  too,"  said  the  grandfather;  "that  is 
the  Casaplana.  So  it  pleased  you  up  in  the  pasture? 
did  it  ? " 

Then  Heidi  told  him  about  everything  that  had  hap- 
pened throughout  the  day  —  how  lovely  it  had  been ; 
and  she  asked  her  grandfather  to  tell  her  where  the  fire 
at  evening  had  come  from,  for  Peter  had  not  known  any- 
thing about  it. 

"  You  see,"  the  grandfather  explained,  "  the  sun  does 
it.  When  he  says  good-night  to  the  mountains,  he  sends 
to  them  his  most  beautiful  rays  so  that  they  may  not 
forget  him  until  he  comes  back  again  in  the  morning." 

This  pleased  Heidi,  and  she  could  hardly  wait  for 
another  day  to  come  so  that  she  could  go  up  to  the 
pasture  and  see  once  more  how  the  sun  said  good-night 
to  the  mountains.  But  first  she  had  to  go  to  sleep,  and 
she  slept  soundly  the  whole  night  long  on  her  bed  of 
hay  and  dreamed  of  bright,  shining  mountains  and  their 
red  roses,  in  the  midst  of  which  Schneehopli  merrily 
ran  and  jumped. 


CHAPTER   IV 

AT   THE   GRANDMOTHER'S 

On  the  following  morning  the  bright  sun  appeared 
again,  and  Peter  came  with  his  goats,  and  they  all  went 
together  up  to  the  pasture ;  and  so  it  happened  day  after 
day.  Heidi  grew  very  brown  and  strong  and  healthy 
from  this  outdoor  life,  and  she  was  as  happy  as  the 
merry  little  birds  in  all  the  trees  in  the  green  woods. 

It  was  now  autumn,  and  the  wind  was  beginning  to 
blow  louder  over  the  mountains  ;  so  the  grandfather 
said  one  day  :  — 

"  You  must  stay  here  to-day,  Heidi ;  the  wind  with 
one  puff  could  blow  a  little  thing  like  you  over  all  the 
rocks  down  into  the  valley." 

But  when  Peter  heard  this  in  the  morning,  he  looked 
very  unhappy,  for  he  saw  real  misfortune  before  him. 
He  did  not  know  how  to  pass  the  time,  it  was  so  tedi- 
ous when  Heidi  was  not  with  him.  He  missed  his 
hearty  dinner.  Moreover,  the  goats  were  so  contrary 
these  days  that  he  had  twice  as  much  trouble  with 
them  ;  they  were  so  accustomed  to  Heidi's  company 
that  they  would  not  go  along,  but  ran  off  in  every 
direction,  because  she  was  not  with  them. 

Heidi  was  never  unhappy,  for  she  always  found  some- 
thing about  her  to  enjoy.     She  would  have  preferred 

47 


48  HEIDI 

to  go  with  Peter  and  the  goats  to  the  pasture,  to  the 
flowers,  and  up  to  the  robber-bird,  where  there  were  so 
many  things  to  do,  with  all  the  different  goats ;  but 
still  her  grandfather's  hammering  and  sawing  and  car- 
pentering were  very  interesting  to  Heidi.  It  pleased 
her  that  he  was  just  preparing  the  pretty  round  goat 
cheeses.  Since  she  had  to  stay  at  home,  it  was  particu- 
larly delightful  to  watch  the  remarkable  operations  of 
her  grandfather  as  he  bared  both  arms  and  stirred  the 
cheese  in  the  big  kettle. 

But  more  attractive  than  all  else  to  Heidi  on  such 
windy  days  was  the  roaring  and  rushing  in  the  three 
old  fir  trees  behind  the  hut.  Wherever  she  happened 
to  be,  she  had  to  run  to  them  every  little  while,  for 
nothing  was  so  fascinating  and  wonderful  as  this  deep, 
mysterious  sound  up  in  the  tree-tops.  Heidi  would 
stand  under  them  and  listen  ;  she  was  never  tired  of 
seeing  and  hearing  how  the  wind  roared  and  rocked 
the  trees  with  such  might. 

The  sun  was  no  longer  hot,  as  in  summer,  and  Heidi 
brought  out  her  shoes  and  stockings  and  also  her  little 
coat ;  for  it  grew  cooler  and  cooler.  When  she  stood 
under  the  fir  trees  the  wind  blew  through  her  as  if  she 
were  a  thin  leaf,  but  she  kept  running  back  again  and 
could  not  stay  in  the  house  when  she  heard  the  wind. 

Then  it  grew  cold,  and  Peter  breathed  on  his  hands 
when  he  came  early  in  the  morning,  but  not  for  long, 
for  suddenly  one  night  a  deep  snow  fell.  When  the 
sun  rose,  the  whole  Aim  was  white,  and  not  a  single 
green  leaf  was  to  be  seen  anywhere  about 


AT  THE   GRANDMOTHER'S  49 

After  this  goatherd  Peter  came  no  more  with  his 
flock;  and  Heidi  looked  with  amazement  out  of  the 
little  window,  for  it  was  beginning  to  snow  again ;  and 
big  flakes  fell  thick  and  fast,  until  the  snow  came  up 
to  the  window,  and  then  still  higher,  until  they  could  not 
open  the  window,  and  they  were  completely  buried  in 
the  little  house.  This  made  Heidi  so  merry  that  she 
kept  running  from  one  window  to  the  other  to  see  how 
it  was  increasing  and  whether  the  snow  would  cover  the 
entire  hut,  so  that  they  would  need  to  have  a  light  in 
the  middle  of  the  day.  It  was  not  so  bad  as  that ;  and 
the  following  day  the  grandfather  went  out  with  his 
shovel,  for  the  storm  was  ended.  He  piled  up  great 
heaps  of  snow,  so  that  there  seemed  to  be  mountains 
of  it  all  around  the  hut. 

Now  the  windows  and  the  door  were  free,  and  it  was 
fortunate  ;  for  as  Heidi  and  her  grandfather  were  sitting 
in  the  afternoon  on  their  three-legged  stools,  suddenly 
there  was  a  great  knocking  and  stamping  against  the 
threshold,  and  finally  the  door  opened.  It  was  Peter 
the  goatherd;  he  had  not  kicked  against  the  door 
through  rudeness,  but  in  order  to  beat  off  the  snow 
from  his  shoes.  Indeed,  Peter  was  covered  with  snow, 
for  he  had  been  obliged  to  struggle  through  the  high 
drifts ;  so  that  great  lumps  remained  clinging  to  him, 
frozen  fast  by  the  sharp  cold.  But  he  had  not  given 
up,  for  he  was  anxious  to  reach  Heidi,  whom  he  had 
not  seen  for  a  whole  long  week. 

"  Good-afternoon,"  said  he  as  he  entered,  then 
placed   himself   as   near  as   possible  to   the  fire  and 


50  HEIDI 

made  no  further  remark  ;  but  his  whole  face  beamed 
with  pleasure  at  being  there.  Heidi  looked  at  him 
wonderingly  ;  for  now  that  he  was  so  near  the  fire,  he 
began  to  thaw  all  over,  so  that  he  looked  like  a  little 
waterfall. 

*'  Well,  general,  how  are  you  ? "  asked  the  grand- 
father. "  Now  you  are  without  an  army  and  must 
bite  your  slate  pencil." 

"Why  must  he  bite  his  slate  pencil,  grandfather?" 
asked  Heidi  at  once  with  curiosity. 

"  In  winter  he  has  to  go  to  school,"  explained  the 
grandfather.  "  There  you  learn  to  read  and  write,  and 
often  it  is  hard  work  ;  so  it  helps  a  little  if  you  bite 
your  slate  pencil.    Isn't  it  so,  general.?" 

"  Yes,  it  is  so,"  said  Peter. 

Heidi's  interest  in  the  matter  was  now  aroused,  and 
she  had  to  ask  Peter  a  great  many  questions  about  the 
school  and  everything  that  happened  and  was  to  be 
seen  and  heard  there.  As  much  time  was  always  spent 
in  any  conversation  in  which  Peter  was  obliged  to  take 
part,  the  result  was  that  meanwhile  he  was  able  to  get 
well  dried  from  top  to  toe.  It  was  always  a  great  effort 
for  him  to  put  his  thoughts  into  words  —  to  express  his 
meaning,;  but  this  time  it  was  unusually  difficult,  for 
he  had  scarcely  succeeded  in  giving  one  answer  before 
Heidi  put  two  or  three  more  unexpected  questions  and 
mostly  such  as  required  a  whole  sentence  in  reply. 

The  grandfather  had  kept  quite  still  during  this  con- 
versation, but  the  corners  of  his  mouth  had  twitched  with 
amusement,  and  this  was  a  sign  that  he  was  listening. 


AT  THE    GRANDMOTHER'S  51 

"Well,  general,  now  you  have  been  under  fire  and 
need  strengthening.     Come,  stay  to  supper  with  us !  " 

Whereupon  the  grandfather  rose  and  brought  the 
evening  meal  from  the  cupboard,  and  Heidi  pushed 
the  stools  to  the  table.  Next  the  wall  there  was  still 
another  seat,  which  the  grandfather  had  made  and  fas- 
tened there.  Now  that  he  was  no  longer  alone,  he  had 
fashioned  here  and  there  all  sorts  of  seats  for  two ;  for 
Heidi  had  a  way  of  always  keeping  near  him  wher- 
ever he  went.  So  they  all  three  had  good  seats ;  and 
Peter  opened  his  round  eyes  very  wide  when  he  saw 
what  a  big  piece  of  the  fine  dried  meat  the  Aim-Uncle 
laid  on  his  thick  slice  of  bread.  Peter  had  not  had 
anything  so  good  for  a  long  time.  When  the  pleasant 
meal  was  over,  it  began  to  grow  dark,  and  Peter  started 
for  home.  When  he  had  said  "good-night  "  and  "  God 
bless  you"  and  was  already  in  the  doorway,  he  turned 
round  once  more  and  said  :  — 

"  Next  Sunday  I  will  come  again  —  a  week  from 
to-day;  and  you  must  come  to  my  grandmother's  some- 
time ;  she  said  so," 

It  was  a  new  idea  to  Heidi  that  she  should  go  to 
visit  some  one,  but  it  took  root  on  the  spot,  and  on  the 
following  morning  Heidi's  first  words  were  :  — 

"  Grandfather,  now  I  must  really  go  down  to  the 
grandmother's  ;  she  expects  me." 

"There  is  too  much  snow,"  replied  the  grandfather, 
putting  her  off.  But  the  purpose  was  deeply  seated  in 
Heidi's  mind.  After  that  not  a  day  passed  when  Heidi 
did  not  say  five  or  six  times :  — 


■  ■     ^k^  n  I 


52  HEIDI 

"  Grandfather,  now  I  must  really  go ;  the  grand- 
mother is  expecting  me." 

On  the  fourth  day,  when  the  cold  was  so  bitter  that 
it  cracked  and  creaked  with  every  footstep  outdoors, 
and  the  whole  covering  of  snow  was  frozen  hard  all 
about,  and  yet  the  beautiful  sun  looked  in  at  the  window, 
Heidi,  as  she  sat  on  her  high  stool  eating  her  dinner, 
began  her  little  speech  again  :  — 

"  To-day  I  must  really  go  to  the  grandmother's ;  she 
will  be  tired  of  waiting  for  me." 

Then  the  grandfather  rose  from  the  dinner  table, 
went  up  to  the  hayloft,  brought  down  the  thick  bag 
that  served  as  Heidi's  bed  covering,  and  said :  — 

*'  Well,  come  along  !  " 

The  child  was  greatly  delighted  and  skipped  after 
him  out  into  the  glistening  world  of  snow.  In  the  old 
fir  trees  it  was  now  quite  still ;  the  white  snow  lay  on 
every  bough,  and  the  trees  sparkled  and  shone  all  over 
in  the  sunshine  so  gloriously  that  Heidi  jumped  up  and 
down  with  delight  and  kept  exclaiming:  — 

"  Come  out,  grandfather  !  come  out !  The  fir  trees 
are  all  covered  with  real  silver  and  gold ! " 

The  grandfather  had  gone  into  the  shop  and  now 
came  out  with  a  wide  sled.  It  had  a  handle  fastened 
to  the  side,  and  from  the  low  seat  one  could  hold  the 
feet  out  in  front  against  the  snowy  ground  and  steer 
with  one  or  the  other  in  the  required  direction. 

After  the  grandfather  had  first  looked  all  around  the 
fir  trees  with  Heidi,  he  seated  himself  on  the  sled,  took 
the  child  in  his  lap,  wrapped  her  up  in  the  bag,  so  that 


AT  THE    GRANDMOTHER'S  53 

she  might  be  warm  and  comfortable,  and  held  her  tight 
with  his  left  arm,  as  this  was  very  necessary  for  the 
coming  journey.  Then  with  his  right  hand  he  seized 
the  handle  and  gave  a  push  with  both  feet.  The  sled 
shot  away  down  the  mountain  with  such  swiftness  that 
Heidi  thought  she  was  flying  through  the  air  like  a  bird 
and  shouted  with  joy. 

Suddenly  the  sled  stood  still  in  front  of  Peter  the 
goatherd's  hut.  The  grandfather  put  the  child  on  the 
ground,  unwrapped  her  covering,  and  said :  — 

"  Now  go  in,  and  when  it  begins  to  grow  dark,  come 
out  again  and  start  along  on  the  way  home." 

Then  he  turned  round  with  his  sled  and  drew  it  up 
the  mountain. 

Heidi  opened  the  door  and  went  into  a  little  room 
which  looked  black.  There  was  a  fireplace  in  it  and 
some  bowls  on  a  stand.  This  was  the  kitchen.  Then 
came  another  door,  which  Heidi  also  opened.  This  led 
into  a  small  sitting-room ;  for  this  was  not  a  Swiss  cot- 
tage, like  her  grandfather's,  with  one  single,  large  room 
and  a  loft  above  it,  btit  a  very  old  little  house,  where 
everything  was  small,  narrow,  and  shabby. 

When  Heidi  stepped  into  the  little  sitting-room,  she 
stood  right  in  front  of  a  table  by  which  sat  a  woman 
mending  Peter's  jacket.  Heidi  immediately  recognized 
it.  In  the  corner  sat  an  old,  bent  grandmother  spin- 
ning. Heidi  knew  at  once  who  she  was.  She  went 
straight  to  the  spinning  wheel  and  said  :  — 

"  How  do  you  do,  grandmother }  I  have  come  to  see 
you.     Did  you  think  it  was  a  long  time  before  I  came  ?  " 


54  HEIDI 

The  grandmother  raised  her  head  and  sought  for  the 
hand  held  out  to  her.  When  she  found  it,  she  felt  of 
it  for  some  time  thoughtfully  ;  then  she  said  :  — 

"Are  you  the  child  staying  up  with  the  Aim-Uncle? 
Are  you  Heidi  ?  " 

"Yes,  yes,"  replied  the  child;  "I  have  just  come 
down  with  my  grandfather  on  the  sled." 

"  Is  that  possible  !  Your  hand  is  so  warm  !  Say, 
Brigitte,  did  the  Aim-Uncle  himself  come  down  with 
the  child.?" 

Peter's  mother,  Brigitte,  who  was  mending  by  the 
table,  had  risen  and  was  now  examining  the  child  with 
curiosity  from  head  to  foot ;  then  she  said  :  — 

"  I  don't  know,  mother,  whether  the  uncle  himself 
came  with  her  or  not ;  it  is  not  likely  ;  the  child  may 
be  mistaken." 

But  Heidi  looked  straight  at  the  woman  and  said 
sturdily  :  — 

"  I  know  very  well  who  wrapped  me  up  in  the  cov- 
erlet and  brought  me  down  on  the  sled.  It  was  my 
grandfather." 

"  Then  there  must  be  something  in  what  Peter  said 
last  summer  about  the  Aim-Uncle,  although  we  thought 
he  was  not  right,"  said  the  grandmother.  "Who  could 
really  have  believed  that  such  a  thing  was  possible  }  I 
thought  the  child  would  n't  live  three  weeks  up  there ! 
How  does  she  look,  Brigitte  .-*  " 

Brigitte  had  studied  her  so  thoroughly  in  the  mean 
time  that  she  could  well  describe  her  appearance. 

"  She  has  a  delicate  form  like  Adelheid,"  she  replied!  \ 


AT  THE    GRANDMOTHER'S  55 

"  but  she  has  black  eyes  and  curly  hair,  like  Tobias  and 
also  like  the  old  man  up  there.  I  believe  she  looks  like 
them  both." 

Meanwhile  Heidi  was  not  idle ;  she  had  looked  around 
and  noticed  everything.     Now  she  said  :  — 

"  See,  grandmother !  there  is  a  shutter  that  keeps 
swinging  back  and  forth.  My  grandfather  would  drive 
in  a  nail  at  once  to  hold  it  fast.  It  will  break  a  pane 
of  glass.     See,  see  !  " 

"  Oh,  you  good  child  !  "  said  the  grandmother  ;  "  I 
cannot  see  it,  but  I  can  hear  it  and  much  more  be- 
sides the  shutter.  Everything  creaks  and  rattles  when 
the  wind  blows,  and  it  comes  in  everywhere.  Every- 
thing is  loose ;  and  often  in  the  night  when  both  the 
others  are  asleep,  I  am  so  anxious  and  afraid  lest  the 
whole  house  should  tumble  down  over  our  heads  and 
kill  us  all  three ;  and  there  is  no  man  to  mend  any- 
thing about  the  hut,  for  Peter  does  n't  know  how." 

"  But  why  can't  you  see  how  the  shutter  swings, 
grandmother.^  See!  there  it  goes  again — there,  there, 
there ! "  and  Heidi  pointed  with  her  finger  directly 
toward  the  place. 

"  Ah,  child !  I  can  see  nothing  at  all,  nothing  at  all ; 
the  shutter  or  anything  else,"  said  the  grandmother 
mournfully. 

"  But  if  I  go  out  and  open  the  shutter  wide  so  that 
it  will  be  quite  light ;  can  you  see  then,  grandmother .?  " 

"  No,  no,  not  even  then  !  No  one  can  make  it  light 
for  me  again  !  " 

**  But  if  you  go  out  in  the  white  snow,  then  it  will 


56  HEIDI 

surely  be  light  for  you.  Just  come  with  me,  grand- 
mother ;    I  will  show  you." 

Heidi  took  the  grandmother  by  the  hand  to  lead  her 
out,  for  she  was  beginning  to  be  distressed  because  it 
did  not  seem  light  anywhere  to  the  old  dame. 

"  Let  me  sit  still,  you  good  child  !  It  would  be  dark 
to  me  even  in  the  snow  and  in  the  light.  My  eyes 
cannot  see  !  " 

"But  then  in  the  summer  time,  grandmother,"  said 
Heidi,  still  anxiously  seeking  some  way  out  of  the  dif- 
ficulty;  "you  know  when  the  sun  comes  down  quite 
hot  and  then  says  '  good-night '  to  the  mountains,  and 
they  shine  fiery  red,  and  all  the  yellow  flowers  glisten  ; 
then  it  will  be  light  to  you,  won't  it  .-•  " 

"  Ah,  child  !  I  can  never  see  them  any  more.  The 
fiery  mountains  and  the  golden  flowers  above  us  will 
never  more  be  bright  to  me  on  earth  —  nevermore." 

Then  Heidi  burst  into  loud  weeping.  Full  of  dis- 
tress, she  kept  sobbing  :  — 

"  Who  can  make  it  light  again  for  you .''  Can  no 
one  .''     Can  no  one  at  all .''  " 

The  grandmother  tried  to  comfort  the  child,  but 
she  did  not  soon  succeed.  Heidi  hardly  ever  cried; 
but  when  she  once  began,  it  was  almost  impossible 
for  her  to  recover  from  her  grief. 

The  grandmother  had  tried  every  means  to  soothe 
the  child,  for  it  went  to  her  heart  to  have  her  sob  so 
pitifully.     Finally  she  said  :  — 

"  Come,  dear  Heidi,  come  here  !  I  want  to  tell  you 
something.     When  a  person  cannot  see,  it  is  so  pleas- 


AT  THE    GRANDMOTHER'S  57 

ant  to  hear  a  friendly  word,  and  I  like  to  hear  you  talk. 
Come,  sit  down  near  me  and  tell  me  what  you  do  up 
there  and  what  your  grandfather  does.  I  used  to  know 
him  well,  but  for  many  years  I  have  heard  nothing 
about  him,  except  through  Peter ;  but  Peter  does  n't 
say  much." 

Then  a  new  idea  came  to  Heidi's  mind.  She  quickly 
wiped  away  her  tears  and  said  comfortingly :  — 

"Just  wait,  grandmother;  I  will  tell  my  grandfather 
all  about  it.  He  will  make  it  light  for  you  again,  and 
he  will  fix  the  hut  so  that  it  won't  tumble  down.  He 
can  make  everything  all  right." 

The  grandmother  remained  silent.  Then  Heidi  be- 
gan with  great  liveliness  to  tell  about  her  life  with  her 
grandfather  and  the  days  she  spent  in  the  pasture ; 
about  her  present  life  in  the  winter,  and  what  her 
grandfather  made  out  of  wood  —  benches  and  stools 
and  lovely  cribs  to  put  hay  in  for  Schwanli  and  Barli, 
and  a  large  new  water  tub  for  bathing  in  summer,  and 
a  new  milk  bowl  and  spoon.  Heidi  grew  still  more 
eager  in  describing  the  beautiful  things  which  were 
made  out  of  a  piece  of  wood,  and  how  she  staid  near 
her  grandfather  and  watched  him,  and  how  quickly  he 
did  everything.  The  grandmother  listened  with  great 
interest  and  from  time  to  time  interrupted  her  with  :  — 

"  Do  you  hear  that,  Brigitte  ?  Do  you  hear  what  she 
says  of  the  uncle  .''  " 

Suddenly  the  story  was  interrupted  by  a  great  thump- 
ing at  the  door,  and  in  stamped  Peter.  The  boy  im- 
mediately stood  still  and  opened  his  round  eyes  wide 


58  HEIDI 

in  astonishment  at  the  sight  of  Heidi,  and  then  a  good- 
natured  grin  spread  over  his  face  as  she  said  :  "  Good- 
afternoon,  Peter !  " 

"  Is  it  possible  that  he  has  already  come  home 
from  school !  "  exclaimed  the  grandmother  in  surprise. 
"  No  afternoon  for  many  a  year  has  passed  so  quickly ! 
Good-afternoon,  Peterli !  How  did  you  get  on  with 
the  reading  ?  " 

"Just  the  same,"  answered  Peter. 

"Dear,  dear!"  said  the  grandmother  with  a  little 
sigh;  "I  thought  there  might  be  a  change!  Think! 
You  will  be  twelve  years  old  next  February ! " 

"Why  should  there  be  a  change,  grandmother?" 
asked  Heidi  at  once  with  interest. 

"  I  only  thought  he  might  be  able  to  learn  some- 
thing," said  the  grandmother;  "learn  to  read,  I  mean. 
Up  there  on  the  shelf  I  have  an  old  prayer-book  with 
beautiful  hymns  in  it  which  I  have  not  heard  for  so 
long  that  I  cannot  remember  them  ;  so  I  thought  if 
Peterli  could  only  learn,  he  would  perhaps  be  able  to 
read  Some  of  the  verses  to  me.  But  he  cannot  learn ; 
it  is  too  hard  for  him." 

"  I  think  I  must  get  a  light,  it  is  already  quite  dark," 
said  Peter's  mother,  who  had  been  busy  mending  the 
jacket  all  the  while.  "The  afternoon  has  gone  before 
I  was  aware  of  it,  either." 

Then  Heidi  jumped  up  from  her  chair,  quickly 
reached  out  her  hand  and  said  :  — 

"  Good-night,  grandmother  !  I  must  go  home  right 
away,  if  it  is  growing  dark  "  ;  and  Peter  and  his  mother 


AT   THE    GRANDMOTHER'S  59 

shook  hands  with  her,  one  after  the  other,  and  accom- 
panied her  to  the  door.  But  the  grandmother  called 
out  anxiously :  — 

"  Wait,  wait,  Heidi !  You  must  not  go  alone.  Peter 
must  go  with  you ;  do  you  hear .?  And  take  care  of  the 
child,  Peterli.  Don't  let  her  fall  down  or  stand  still 
with  her,  for  she  might  freeze.  •  Do  you  hear }  And 
has  she  a  good  thick  handkerchief  round  her  neck .-'  " 

♦*  I  have  no  handkerchief  at  all ;  but  I  shall  not 
freeze,"  Heidi  called  back.  Then  she  went  out  at  the 
door  and  slipped  away  so  quickly  that  Peter  could 
hardly  follow  her. 

But  the  grandmother  called  anxiously:  — 

"  Run  after  her,  Brigitte,  run !  The  child  will  be 
frozen  —  out  so  in  the  night.  Take  my  neckerchief. 
Run  quickly !  " 

Brigitte  obeyed.  But  the  children  had  gone  only  a 
few  steps  up  the  mountain  when  they  saw  the  grand- 
father coming  down,  and  in  a  moment  he  was  with 
them. 

"Very  good,  Heidi,"  said  he;  "you  have  kept  your 
word ! "  He  wrapped  the  coverlet  round  the  child 
once  more,  took  her  in  his  arms  and  climbed  up  the 
mountain.  Brigitte  saw  this  and  went  back  into  the 
hut  with  Peter  and  told  the  grandmother  in  great 
surprise  all  about  it.  The.  grandmother  was  also  sur- 
prised and  kept  saying :  — 

"  God  be  praised  and  thanked  that  he  is  so  good  to 
her !  God  be  praised  and  thanked !  If  he  will  only 
let  her  come  to  see  me  again ;  for  the  child  did  me  so 


60  HEIDI 

much  good  !  What  a  kind  heart  she  has  !  How  amus- 
ingly she  talks  !  "  And  until  she  went  to  bed  she  kept 
repeating  :  — 

"  If  she  will  only  come  again  !  Now  there  is  some- 
thing still  left  in  the  world  to  give  me  pleasure!  " 

Brigitte  agreed  with  her  every  time,  and  Peter  nodded 
his  head  approvingly  and  stretched  his  mouth  wide  with 
delight,  saying :  — 

"  I  knew  it !  " 

Meanwhile  Heidi,  wrapped  in  her  bag,  had  much  to 
say  to  her  grandfather ;  but  as  her  voice  did  not  pene- 
trate the  eight-fold  wrap,  and  he  could  not  understand 
a  word,  he  said  :  — 

"  Wait  a  little,  until  we  get  home ;  then  tell  me 
about  it." 

As  soon  as  he  reached  the  hut  and  had  taken  off 
Heidi's  wrap,  she  said:  — 

"Grandfather,  to-morrow  we  must  take  the  hammer 
and  the  big  nails  and  fasten  the  shutter  at  the  grand- 
mother's house,  and  drive  a  good  many  more  nails ;  for 
everything  creaks  and  rattles  there." 

"  We  must }  We  must  do  so  .-'  Who  told  you  that }  " 
asked  the  grandfather. 

"  Nobody  told  me  so  ;  I  knew  it  without,"  replied 
Heidi ;  "  for  everything  is  loose  and  it  makes  the 
grandmother  anxious  and  afraid  when  the  wind  blows; 
and  she  can't  sleep.  She  thinks  :  '  Now  everything  will 
fall  down  on  our  heads.'  And  nobody  can  make  it 
light  any  more  for  the  grandmother !  She  does  n't 
know  how  any  one  can.     But  you  can  surely,  grand- 


AT  THE   GRANDMOTHER'S  61 

father !  Only  think  how  sad  it  is  for  her  to  be 
always  in  the  dark !  and  nobody  can  help  her  but 
you  !     To-morrow  we  will  go  ;  won't  we,  grandfather  ?  " 

Heidi  clung  to  her  grandfather  and  looked  up  at 
him  with  undoubting  confidence.  The  old  man  gazed 
at  the  child  for  a  little  while,  then  said  :  — 

"Yes,  Heidi;  we  will  make  everything  fast  at  the 
grandmother's  hut,  so  that  there  will  be  no  more  rat- 
tling.    To-morrow  we  will  do  so," 

Then  the  child  jumped  for  joy  all  around  the  room 
and  cried :  — 

"  To-morrow  we  will  do  it !  To-morrow  we  will 
do  it!" 

The  grandfather  kept  his  word.  The  following  after- 
noon they  took  the  same  ride  on  the  sled.  The  old 
man  set  the  child  down  before  the  door  and  said : 
"  Now  go  in,  and  when  it  is  night  come  back."  Then 
he  laid  the  bag  on  the  sled  and  went  around  the  house. 

Scarcely  had  Heidi  opened  the  door  and  run  into 
the  room,  when  the  grandmother  called  out  from  her 
corner : — 

"  Here  comes  the  child  !     It  is  the  child  !  " 

She  dropped  her  thread  and  stopped  the  wheel  for 
joy,  and  held  out  both  hands. 

Heidi  immediately  pushed  the  little  low  chair  quite 
near,  sat  down  in  it,  and  had  a  great  many  more  things 
to  tell  her  and  to  ask  her.  "  But  suddenly  there  was  a 
heavy  pounding  on  the  house.  It  startled  the  grand- 
mother so  that  she  nearly  upset  the  spinning  wheel 
and,  trembling,  cried  out :  — 


62  HEIDI 

"  Oh,  dear  me !  it  has  come  at  last ;  the  hut  is  all 
tumbling  to  pieces." 

But  Heidi  held  her  fast  by  the  arm  and  said  consol- 
ingly :  — 

"  No,  no,  grandmother ;  don't  be  afraid,  it  is  grand- 
father with  his  hammer ;  he  is  going  to  mend  every- 
thing so  that  you  won't  be  worried  and  afraid  any 
longer."  '\ 

"  Oh  !  is  it  possible  ?  Is  such  a  thing  possible  ?  So 
the  dear  Lord  has  not  entirely  forgotten  us  !  "  exclaimed 
the  grandmother.  "  Did  you  hear  that,  Brigitte,  did 
you  hear  what  it  is  .-'  It  is  really  a  hammer !  Go  out, 
Brigitte,  and  if  it  is  the  Aim-Uncle  tell  him  he  must 
come  in  a  moment  and  let  me  thank  him." 

Brigitte  went  out.  The  Aim-Uncle  was  just  driving 
new  fastenings  into  the  wall ;  Brigitte  went  toward  him 
and  said  :  — 

'*  I  wish  you  good-afternoon,  uncle,  and  so  does  my 
mother ;  and  I  want  to  thank  you  for  doing  us  such  a 
service,  and  so  does  my  mother  indoors.  Surely  no  one 
else  would  do  such  a  thing  for  us,  and  we  want  to  thank 
you,  for  surely"  — 

"  That  will  do,"  interrupted  the  old  man  ;  "  what  you 
think  of  the  Aim-Uncle  I  already  know.  Just  go  back 
into  the  house  ;  I  can  find  out  myself  what  needs  to  be 
done." 

Brigitte  at  once  obeyed,  for  the  uncle  had  a  way 
which  people  did  not  usually  oppose.  He  pounded  and 
hammered  all  around  the  hut ;  then  he  climbed  the  nar- 
row little  staircase  up  under  the  roof  and  kept  on  ham- 


AT  THE    GRANDMOTHER'S  63 

mering  until  he  had  driven  the  last  nail  he  had  brought 
with  him.  Meanwhile  it  had  begun  to  grow  dark ; 
he  had  hardly  come  down  and  drawn  his  sled  from 
behind  the  goat-shed  when  Heidi  stepped  out  from  the 
door.  The  grandfather  wrapped  her  up  in  his  arms 
and  carried  her  as  on  the  previous  day,  drawing  the  sled 
after  him. 

Thus  the  winter  passed.  After  many  long  years  a 
joy  had  come  into  the  blind  grandmother's  dreary  life, 
and  her  days  were  no  more  long  and  dark ;  for  now  she 
always  had  something  pleasant  to  anticipate.  From 
early  morning  she  listened  for  the  tripping  footstep, 
and  when  the  door  opened  and  the  child  actually  came 
dancing  in,  then  she  always  exclaimed  joyfully :  — 

"  God  be  praised  !     She  has  come  again  !  " 

Heidi  would  sit  down  by  her  side  and  prattle  and  talk 
merrily  about  everything  she  knew ;  it  made  the  time 
pass  so  quickly  that  the  grandmother  did  not  notice  it, 
and  not  once  did  she  ask  as  formerly :  — 

"  Brigitte,  is  the  day  nearly  over }  " 

Every  time  that  Heidi  closed  the  door  behind  her 
she  would  say  :  — 

"  How  short  the  afternoon  has  been,  has  n't  it,  Bri- 
gitte .''  "  and  Brigitte  would  reply  :  "  To  be  sure,  it  seems 
to  me  we  have  hardly  put  away  the  dinner  plates." 

And  the  grandmother  would  say  again  :  — 

"  If  only  the  good  Lord  will  preserve  the  child  for 
me  and  keep  the  Aim-Uncle  kind.  Does  she  look  well, 
Brigitte  .-'  "  and  every  time  Brigitte  would  answer  :  "  She 
looks  like  a  rosy  apple." 


64  HEIDI 

Heidi  had  also  a  great  fondness  for  the  old  grand- 
mother, and  whenever  it  came  to  her  mind  that  no 
one,  not  even  her  grandfather,  could  make  it  light  for 
her  again,  a  great  feeling  of  sorrow  came  over  her ;  but 
the  grandmother  assured  her  that  she  suffered  least 
when  she  was  with  her,  so  Heidi  came  down  on  the 
sled  every  fine  winter's  day.  The  grandfather,  without 
making  any  objection,  had  brought  her,  always  carrying 
his  hammer  and  other  things  ;  and  he  spent  many  an 
afternoon  working  about  Peter's  hut.  It  had  a  good 
result ;  there  was  no  more  creaking  and  rattling,  and 
the  grandmother  said  she  should  never  forget  the  uncle, 
for  she  had  not  been  able  to  sleep  well  for  many  a  long 
winter. 


CHAPTER   V 

TWO   VISITS    AND   THEIR   CONSEQUENCES 

Quickly  passed  the  winter,  and  still  more  quickly 
the  merry  summer  following ;  and  a  new  winter  was 
already  drawing  to  an  end.  Heidi  was  as  happy  and 
contented  as  the  birds  of  the  air,  and  rejoiced  more  and 
more  every  day  in  the  approaching  spring,  when  the 
warm  south  wind  would  blow  through  the  fir  trees  and 
drive  away  the  snow ;  then  the  bright  sunshine  would 
call  forth  the  blue  and  yellow  flowers,  and  the  days  in 
the  pasture  would  come  again — days  which  to  Heidi 
brought  the  greatest  pleasure  that  earth  could  give. 

Heidi  was  now  in  her  eighth  year ;  she  had  learned 
all  sorts  of  handiwork  from  her  grandfather.-  She  could 
go  around  with  the  goats  as  if  she  were  one  of  them, 
and  Schwanli  and  Barli  followed  her  like  trusty  dogs, 
bleating  loudly  for  joy  if  they  merely  heard  her 
voice. 

This  winter  Peter  had  already  brought  word  twice 
from  the  school-teacher  in  Dorfli  that  the  Aim-Uncle 
ought  to  send  the  child  living  with  him  to  school,  for 
she  was  more  than  old  enough  and  should  have  gone 
the  winter  before.  The  uncle  had  sent  word  back  to 
the  school-teacher  both  times  that  if  he  wanted  anything 
of  him  he  would  find  him  at  home,  but  that  he  should 

6; 


66 


HEIDI 


not  send  the  child  to  school.     This  message  Peter  had 
faithfully  delivered. 

When  the  March  sun  had  melted  the  snow  on  the 
slopes,  and  the  snowdrops  were  in  bloom  everywhere 


in  the  valley,  when  the  fir  trees  on  the  Aim  had  shaken 
off  their  burden  of  snow,  and  their  branches  again 
waved  merrily  —  then  Heidi  in  her  delight  kept  running 
back  and  forth  from  the  house  to  the  goat-shed,  and 
from  the  goat-shed  to  the  fir  trees,  and  then  into  the 
hut  to  her  grandfather  to  tell  him  how  much  larger  the 


TIVO   VISITS  AND    THEIR   CONSEQUENCES  67 

piece  of  green  ground  had  grown  under  the  trees.  Then 
she  would  immediately  run  back  to  look  again,  for  she 
could  not  wait  until  everything  should  be  green  once 
more,  arid  the  lovely  summer  with  its  verdure  and  bloom 
return  to  the  mountain. 

One  sunny  March  morning,  when  Heidi  was  running 
back  and  forth  in  this  way,  and  was  jumping  over  the 
threshold  for  about  the  tenth  time,  she  nearly  fell  back- 
wards into  the  house  from  fright ;  for  suddenly  there 
appeared  before  her  an  old  man  all  in  black,  who  looked 
at  her  very  earnestly.  But  when  he  saw  how  startled 
she  was,  he  said  kindly  :  — 

"  You  must  not-  be  afraid  of  me ;  I  love  children. 
Give  me  your  hand !  You  must  be  Heidi ;  where  is 
your  grandfather  .-•  "  . 

"  He  is  sitting  at  the  table,  carving  round  spoons  out 
of  wood,"  replied  Heidi,  opening  the  door. 

It  was  the  old  pastor  from  Dorfli,  who  had  known  the 
uncle  well  years  before,  when  he  still  lived  in  the  valley 
and  was  one  of  his  neighbors.  He  stepped  into  the  hut, 
went  up  to  the  old  man;  who  was  bending  over  his  wood- 
carving,  and  said :  — 

"  Good-morning,  neighbor !  " 

The  grandfather  looked  up  in  surprise;  the  next 
instant  he  rose  and  replied  :  - — 

"  Good-morning,  pastor."  Then  he  offered  him  his 
stool,  saying:  "If  the  pastor  does  not  object  to  a 
wooden  seat,  here  is  one." 

The  pastor  sat  down.     After  a  moment  he  said  :  — 

"  I  have  not  seen  you  for  a  long  time,  neighbor." 


68  A  HEIDI 

"Nor  have  I  seen  you,  pastor,"  was  the  answer. 

"  I  come  to-day  to  talk  with  you  about  something," 
continued  the  pastor.  "  I  think  you  already  know  what 
the  matter  is  which  I  am  going  to  speak  about,  and  I 
want  to  hear  what  your  intention  is." 

The  pastor  remained  silent  and  looked  at  the  child, 
standing  in  the  doorway  and  attentively  watching  the 
new  apparition. 

•'  Heidi,  go  out  to  the  goats,"  said  the  grandfather. 
"  You  may  take  a  little  salt  along  and  stay  with  them 
until  I  come." 

Heidi  immediately  disappeared. 

"The  child  should  have  been  sent  to  school  a  year 
ago,  and  she  certainly  ought  to  have  gone  this  winter," 
said  the  pastor ;  "  the  teacher  has  sent  you  word  about 
it,  but  you  have  made  no  reply.  What  do  you  intend 
to  do  with  her,  neighbor  1  " 

"  I  do  not  intend  to  send  her  to  school,"  was  the 
answer. 

The  pastor  looked  in  surprise  at  the  old  man  as  he 
sat  with  folded  arms  on  his  bench  and  looked  very 
determined. 

"What  are  you  going  to  make  of  the  child.?"  then 
asked  the  pastor. 

"  Nothing ;  she  grows  and  thrives  with  the  goats  and 
'  the  birds  ;  she  is  well  enough  with  them,  and  she  learns 
no  harm  from  them." 

"  But  the  child  is  neither  a  goat  nor  a  bird ;  she  is  a 
human  being.  If  she  learns  no  harm  from  such  com- 
panions, neither  does  she  learn  anything  elsfe  ;  she  ought 


TIVO   VIS  ITS  AND    THEIR   CONSEQUENCES  69 

to  learn  something,  and  the  time  for  it  has  arrived.  I 
have  come  to  tell  you  now,  neighbor,  so  that  you  may 
be  able  to  think  it  over  and  make  your  arrangements 
during  the  summer.  This  is  the  last  winter  that  the 
child  can  spend  without  any  instruction ;  next  winter 
she  must  go  to  school,  and  every  day." 

"I  shall  not  do  it,  pastor,"  said  the  old  man  de- 
cidedly. 

"  Do  you  really  suppose,  then,  that  there  is  no  means 
of  bringing  you  to  terms  if  you  will  persist  so  obsti- 
nately in  your  unreasonable  behavior .'' "  said  the  pastor 
somewhat  warmly.  "  You  have  been  about  the  world 
a  great  deal  and  have  had  an  opportunity  to  see  and 
learn  much,  and  I  should  give  you  credit  for  better 
sense,  neighbor." 

"  Indeed  !  "  said  the  old  man ;  and  his  voice  showed 
that  he  was  no  longer  so  perfectly  calm  in  his  mind ; 
"and  does  the  pastor  suppose  that  I  would  really  send 
a  delicate  child  next  winter  on  icy  mornings  through 
storm  and  snow  down  the  mountain,  a  two  hours' 
journey,  and  let  her  come  back  again  at  night,  when 
it  often  blusters  and  rages  so  that  any  one  of  us  would 
be  lost  in  the  wind  and  snow,  and  she  only  a  little 
child  .■*  Possibly  the  pastor  can  recall  her  mother, 
Adelheid ;  she  used  to  walk  in  her  sleep  and  have  ill 
turns.  Shall  the  child,  too,  be  made  to  suffer  from 
such  a  struggle .?  Just  let  any  one  come  and  try  to 
compel  me !  I  will  go  into  every  court  with  her,  and 
then  we  shall  see  who  is  going  to  compel  me ! " 

"  You  are  quite  right,  neighbor,"  said  the  pastor  with 


70  HEIDI 

friendliness  ;  "  it  would  not  be  possible  to  send  the  child 
from  here  to  school.  But  I  can  see  that  she  is  dear  to 
you  ;  for  her  sake  do  what  you  ought  to  have  done  long 
ago ;  come  down  into  Dorfli  and  live  once  more  with 
human  beings.  What  kind  of  a  life  is  this  up  here, 
alone  and  embittered  toward  God  and  man  I  If  any- 
thing should  happen  to  you  up  here,  who  would  help 
you .''  I  cannot  understand  in  the  least  why  you  are 
not  half  frozen  all  winter  long  in  your  hut,  and  how  can 
the  delicate  child  endure  it .-' '" 

"  The  child  has  young  blood  and  good  shelter ;  that  I 
can  assure  you,  pastor.  Moreover,  I  know  where  there 
is  wood,  and  also  when  it  is  a  good  time  to  get  it ;  the 
pastor  ought  to  look  into  my  shed ;  there  is  enough 
there  so  that  the  fire  in  my  hut  never  goes  out  all  win- 
ter long.  It  is  not  for  me  to  go  down  into  the  valley 
as  the  pastor  suggests ;  the  people  down  there  despise 
me  and  I  despise  them,  so  it  is  better  for  both  that  we 
remain  apart." 

"  No,  no ;  it  is  not  good  for  you  ;  I  know  what  the 
trouble  is,"  said  the  pastor  earnestly.  "  As  to  the  peo- 
ple scorning  you  down  in  the  valley,  it  is  not  so  bad. 
Believe  me,  neighbor,  seek  to  make  peace  with  your 
God ;  ask  for  his  pardon  if  you  have  done  any  wrong, 
and  then  come  and  see  how  differently  the  people  re- 
gard you,  and  how  well  it  can  still  be  with  you." 

The  pastor  rose,  held  out  his  hand  to  the  old  man, 
and  said  again  with  heartiness  :  — 

"  I  count  upon  it,  neighbor,  that  next  winter  you 
are  to  come  down  with  us,  for  we  are  good  old  friends. 


TIVO   VISITS  AND    THEIR    CONSEQUENCES  71 

I  should  feel  very  sorry  if  you  had  to  be  forced  ;  give 
me  your  hand  on  it  that  you  will  come  down  and  live 
among  us  again,  reconciled  to  God  and  man." 

The  Aim-Uncle  gave  his  hand  to  the  pastor,  but 
said  firmly  and  decidedly  :  — 

'•  The  pastor  means  well  toward  me,  but  I  cannot  do 
what  he  expects  ;  that  I  tell  him  surely  and  finally.  I 
shall  not  send  the  child,  neither  shall  I  come  down 
myself." 

"Then  God  help  you!"  said  the  pastor,  and  went 
sadly  out  of  the  hut  and  down  the  mountain. 

The  Aim-Uncle  was  out  of  sorts.  In  the  afternoon 
when  Heidi  said,  "  Now  let  us  go  to  the  grandmother's," 
he  replied  curtly  :   "  Not  to-day." 

He  did  not  speak  again  all  day,  and  on  the  following 
morning  when  Heidi  asked,  "Are  we  going  to  the 
grandmother's  to-day  ? "  he  still  answered  shortly  and 
merely  said:    "We  shall  see." 

Before  the  bowls  had  been  put  away  after  dinner 
another  visitor  came  to  the  door.  It  was  Aunt  Dete. 
She  had  on  her  head  a  fine  hat  with  a  feather  in  it,  and 
a  dress  which  swept  up  everything  on  the  floor,  and  in 
the  hut  lay  all  sorts  of  things  which  would  not  improve 
a  dress. 

The  uncle  looked  at  her  from  top  to  toe  and  said  not 
a  word.  But  Aunt  Dete  had  a  very  friendly  speech  in 
her  mind,  for  she  immediately  began  to  flatter  him  by 
saying  that  Heidi  was  looking  so  well  that  she  hardly 
recognized  her,  and  that  it  was  plain  to  be  seen  that 
she  had  not  fared  ill  with  her  grandfather.     She  had 


72  HEIDI 


really  always  intended  to  take  her  away  again,  for  she 
understood  very  well  that  the  little  one  must  be  a 
trouble  to  him,  but  never  at  any  time  before  had  she 
been  able  to  find  a  place  for  her.  But  day  and  night 
she  had  wondered  how  she  could  provide  for  the  child, 
and  to-day  she  had  come  because  she  had  suddenly 
heard  of  something  which  would  be  such  good  luck  to 
Heidi  that  she  could  hardly  believe  it.  She  had  gone 
at  once  to  see  about  the  matter,  and  now  she  could  say 
it  was  as  good  as  settled,  and  not  one  in  a  hundred 
thousand  was  so  fortunate  as  Heidi. 

"  Some  very  wealthy  relatives  of  my  mistress,  who 
live  in  almost  the  finest  house  in  all  Frankfurt,  have  an 
only  daughter  who  is  obliged  to  sit  all  the  time  in  a 
wheel  chair,  because  she  is  lame  and  not  well  in  other 
ways.  So  she  is  almost  always  alone  and  obliged  to  study 
alone  with  a  teacher,  which  is  very  dull  for  her  ;  and, 
besides,  she  would  like  to  have  a  playmate  in  the  house." 

This  had  been  spoken  about  at  her  employer's  house, 
and  her  mistress,  who  felt  great  sympathy  for  the  little 
invalid,  was  anxious  to  find  such  a  companion  as  the 
housekeeper  described. 

The  housekeeper  had  said  she  wanted  an  unspoiled 
child,  not  like  those  seen  every  day.  Then  Aunt  Dete 
had  at  once  thought  of  Heidi  and  hastened  immediately 
to  tell  her  all  about  the  child  and  her  character;  and 
the  lady  engaged  to  have  her  come.  "  It  was  impossible 
to  tell  what  good  fortune  was  before  Heidi,  for  when 
she  was  once  there,  if  she  pleased  the  people,  and  some- 
thing might  possibly  happen  to  the  only  daughter  — 


TWO   VISITS  AND    THEIR    CONSEQUENCES  73 

there  was  no  knowing,  she  was  so  sickly  —  and  if  the 
people  should  not  care  to  be  left  without  any  child,  the 
most  unheard-of  good  luck  might  "  — 

"Will  you  ever  finish?"  interrupted  the  uncle,  who 
had  not  said  a  word  all  this  time. 

"  Bah,"  retorted  Dete,  tossing  her  head.  "  You  act 
exactly  as  if  I  had  told  you  the  most  ordinary  thing  in 
the  world,  and  there  is  n't  a  single  person  throughout 
all  Prattigau  who  would  n't  thank  God  in  Heaven  if  I 
brought  such  news  to  them  as  I  have  brought  to  you." 

"  Take  it  to  any  one  you  like ;  I  will  have  none  of 
it,"  said  the  uncle  bluntly. 

Dete  went  off  like  a  rocket  and  said :  — 

"Well,  if  that  is  what  you  think  about  it,  uncle,  I 
will  tell  you  what  I  think  ;  the  child  is  now  eight  years 
old  and  can  do  nothing  and  knows  nothing,  and  you 
will  not  let  her  learn  anything.  You  will  not  send  her 
to  school  nor  to  church ;  that  they  told  me  down  in 
Dorfli;  and  she  is  my  own  sister's  child.  I  have  to 
answer  for  what  happens  to  her;  and  when  a  child  can 
have  such  good  fortune  as  Heidi,  there  can  only  be  one 
person  to  prevent,  and  that  one  who  cares  for  nobody 
and  wishes  nobody  any  good.  But  I  won't  give  in  ;  that 
I  can  tell  you  ;  and  the  people  are  all  in  my  favor ;  there 
is  n't  a  single  person  down  in  Dorfli  who  will  not  help  me, 
and  is  not  against  you  ;  so  take  heed  if  you  don't  care 
to  be  brought  before  the  court,  uncle ;  there  are  things 
that  might  be  brought  up  which  you  would  not  like  to 
hear,  for  when  a  man  once  gets  into  court  many  things 
are  hunted  up  that  he  has  forgotten  all  about." 


74  HEIDI 

"Silence!"  roared  the  uncle;  and  his  eyes  blazed 
like  fire,  "  Take  her  and  be  gone  !  Never  bring  her 
into  my  sight  again.  I  never  want  to  see  her  with 
feathers  in  her  hat  and  words  in  her  mouth  such  as 
you  have  spoken  to-day  !  " 

The  uncle  strode  out  of  the  house. 

"  You  have  made  my  grandfather  angry,"  said  Heidi ; 
and  her  black  eyes  snapped  at  her  aunt  in  no  friendly 
way. 

"  He  will  soon  be  all  right  again.  Now  come," 
urged  the  aunt ;  "  where  are  your  clothes .''  " 

"  I  will  not  come,"  said  Heidi. 

"  What  do  you  say  }  "  continued  the  aunt  ;  then  she 
somewhat  changed  her  tone  of  voice  and  went  on  in  a 
half  friendly,  half  annoyed  way  :  — 

"  Come,  come  along,  you  don't  know  any  better ;  you 
can't  imagine  what  a  good  time  you  will  have."  She 
went  to  the  cupboard,  took  out  Heidi's  things  and  put 
them  together. 

"  Now  come,  take  your  little  hat,  it  does  n't  look  very 
well,  but  it  will  do  for  once ;  put  it  on  and  make  haste 
to  come  along." 

"  I  shall  not  come,"  answered  Heidi. 

"  Don't  be  so  foolish  and  stubborn,  like  the  goats ; 
you  must  have  learned  it  from  them.  Listen  to  me ; 
your  grandfather  is  angry  ;  you  have  just  heard  him 
say  that  we  must  never  come  into  his  sight  again ;  he 
wants  you  to  go  with  me  now,  and  you  must  not  make 
him  more  angry.  You  have  n't  the  least  idea  how  lovely 
it  is  in  Frankfurt,  and  how  many  things  you  will  see 


TH^O   VISITS  AND    THEIR    CONSEQUENCES  75 

there ;  and  if  you  don't  like  it  you  can  come  back  here  ; 
then  the  grandfather  will  be  good-natured  again." 

"  Can  I  turn  right  round  and  come  back  again  to- 
night ? " 

"  Oh,  come  along  !  I  tell  you,  you  can  come  home  if 
you  want  to.  To-day  we  will  go  as  far  as  Mayenfeld, 
and  to-morrow  morning  early  we  will  get  into  the  train, 
and  in  that  you  can  get  home  again  in  no  time ;  it 's  like 

flying." 

Aunt  Dete  took  the  bundle  of  clothes  on  her  arm,  and 
Heidi  by  the  hand,  and  they  started  down  the  mountain. 

As  it  was  not  yet  time  to  go  to  the  pasture,  Peter 
still  went  to  school  down  in  Dorfli,  or  was  supposed  to 
go  there  ;  but  he  took  a  holiday  now  and  then,  for  he 
thought  it  was  of  no  use  to  go  to  school ;  reading  was 
not  necessary,  but  a  little  wandering  about  and  looking 
for  large  rods  was  profitable  because  he  could  make  use 
of  them.  So  he  was  just  coming  toward  his  hut  from 
the  farther  side  with  a  visible  result  of  that  day's  efforts 
in  a  huge  long  bundle  of  thick  hazel  rods  which  he  car- 
ried on  his  shoulder.  He  stood  still  and  stared  at  the 
two  approaching  figures  until  they  reached  him. 

"  Where  are  you  going  } "  he  asked. 

"  I  am  hurrying  to  Frankfurt  with  my  aunt,"  replied 
Heidi ;  "  but  I  will  first  go  in  to  see  the  grandmother, 
for  she  is  expecting  me." 

"  No,  no ;  no  talking,  it  is  already  too  late,"  said  the 
aunt  hastily,  and  holding  the  struggling  Heidi  fast  by 
the  hand;  "you  can  see  her  when  you  come  back; 
so  come  along !  " 


76  HEIDI 

Whereupon  the  aunt  dragged  Heidi  off  with  her  and 
did  not  let  go,  for  she  was  afraid  if  she  went  in  the 
child  might  refuse  to  go  away,  and  that  the  grandmother 
might  take  her  part.  Peter  ran  into  the  hut  and  beat 
on  the  table  with  his  whole  bundle  of  rods,  making  such 
a  frightful  noise  that  the  whole  house  trembled ;  the 
grandmother  sprang  up  from  her  spinning  wheel  in 
alarm  and  cried  out  aloud.  Peter  had  to  give  vent  to 
his  feelings. 

"  What  is  the  matter  .''  What  is  the  matter }  "  cried 
the  grandmother  with  great  concern  ;  and  the  mother, 
who  had  been  sitting  by  the  table  and  was  almost 
startled  out  of  her  wits  by  the  noise,  said  in  her  natu- 
rally patient  way  :  — 

"  What  is  the  matter,  Peterli  ?  What  makes  you  so 
wild  ? " 

"  Because  she  has  taken  Heidi  away  with  her,"  ex- 
plained Peter. 

"  Who .''  who  ?  Where,  Peterli,  where  .-•  "  asked  the 
grandmother  with  new  concern  ;  she  quickly  guessed 
what  had  happened,  for  her  daughter  had  told  her  a  short 
time  before  that  she  had  seen  Dete  go  up  to  the  Aim- 
Uncle's.  All  trembling  in  her  haste,  the  grandmother 
opened  the  window  and  called  out  beseechingly  :  — 

"  Dete,  Dete,  don't  take  the  child  away  from  us ! 
Don't  take  Heidi  away  from  us !  " 

The  two  travelers  heard  the  voice,  and  Dete  must 
have  surmised  what  she  said,  for  she  took  hold  of  the 
child  more  firmly  than  ever  and  ran  as  fast  as  she 
could.     Heidi  resisted  and  said :  — 


TWO   VISITS  AND    THEIR    CONSEQUENCES  77 

"The  grandmother  is  calling;  I  want  to  go  to 
her." 

But  the  aunt  would  not  allow  it  and  pacified  the 
child  by  telling  her  that  they  must  hurry  in  order  not 
to  be  too  late,  and  that  the  next  morning  they  could 
travel  farther  and  she  could  then  see  whether  it  pleased 
her  well  enough  in  Frankfurt  to  be  willing  to  stay  there. 
If  she  wanted  to  come  back  home  again,  she  could  do 
so  at  once ;  and  then  she  could  bring  something  to  the 
grandmother  which  would  delight  her.  This  prospect 
pleased  Heidi.  She  began  to  hurry  without  further 
objection  ^ 

"What  can  I  bring  home  to  the  grandmother,?"  she 
asked  after  a  while. 

"  Something  good,"  said  the  aunt ;  "  some  lovely,  soft 
white  rolls  that  will  please  her;  for  she  can  hardly  eat 
the  hard  black  bread  any  longer." 

"  Yes ;  she  always  gives  it  back  to  Peter  and  says : 
*It  is  too  hard  for  me.'  I  have  seen  that  myself,"  stated 
Heidi.  "  So  let  us  go  fast,  Aunt  Dete ;  then,  perhaps, 
we  shall  reach  Frankfurt  to-day,  so  that  I  can  soon  be 
back  again  with  the  rolls." 

Heidi  then  began  to  run  so  fast  that  Dete,  with  her 
bundle  in  her  arms,  could  hardly  keep  up  with  her.  But 
she  was  very  glad  that  she  went  so  swiftly ;  for  they 
were  coming  to  the  first  houses  in  Dorfli,  and  there 
everybody  would  make  remarks  and  ask  questions, 
which  might  set  Heidi  to  thinking  again.  So  she 
hurried  straight  through,  and  the  child  pulled  so  hard 
at  her  hand  that  all  the  people  could  see  that  she  was 


78  HEIDI 

obliged  to  hasten  to  please  the  child.  So  she  merely 
replied  to  those  who  questioned  and  called  to  her  from 
every  door  and  window  :  — 

"  You  see  I  can't  stop  now,  for  the  child  is  in  a 
hurry,  and  we  have  still  far  to  go." 

"Are  you  taking  her  away.?  Is  she  running  away 
from  the  Aim-Uncle }  It 's  only  a  wonder  that  she  is 
still  alive  !     And  yet  what  rosy  cheeks  she  has  !  " 

Such  remarks  as  these  came  from  every  side ;  and 
Dete  was  glad  that  she  came  through  the  place  without 
delay  and  without  being  obliged  to  make  any  explana- 
tionj  and  also  that  Heidi  said  never  a  word,  but  only 
pushed  on  in  the  greatest  haste. 

From  that  day  on  the  Aim-Uncle  looked  more  ill- 
natured  than  ever  when  he  came  down  and  passed 
through  Dorfli.  He  spoke  to  no  one ;  and  with  his 
cheese  basket  on  his  back,  his  enormous  staff  in  his 
hand,  and  his  thick,  contracted  brows,  he  looked  so 
menacing  that  the  women  said  to  the  little  children  :— 

"  Take  care  !  Get  out  of  the  Aim-Uncle's  way  or  he 
may  hurt  you  !  " 

The  old  man  had  nothing  to  do  with  any  one  in 
Dorfli,  but  went  through  there  far  down  into  the  valley, 
where  he  sold  his  cheeses  and  procured  his  supply  of 
bread  and  meat.  When  he  passed  along  through  Dorfli' 
the  people  all  stood  in  groups  behind  him,  and  every 
one  knew  some  strange  thing  about  the  Aim-Uncle ; 
how  he  grew  more  wild-looking,  and  no  longer  even  so 
much  as  greeted  any  one.  All  were  agreed  that  it  was 
fortunate  that  the  child  was  able  to  escape ;  for  they 


TWO  VISITS  AND   THEIR   CONSEQUENCES  79 

had  seen  how  she  hurried  away  as  if  she  were  afraid 
the  old  man  was  coming  after  her  to  bring  her  back. 

The  blind  grandmother  was  the  only  one  who  stood 
by  the  Aim-Uncle ;  and  she  always  told  every  one  who 
came  up  to  her  house,  to  bring  spinning  or  to  get  yarn, 
how  good  and  care-taking  he  had  been  to  the  child,  and 
what  he  had  done  for  her  and  her  daughter ;  how  many 
afternoons  he  had  worked  about  their  little  house,  which 
would  surely  have  tumbled  to  pieces  without  his  help. 
So  this  information  also  reached  Dorfli ;  but  most 
people  who  heard  it  said  that  perhaps  the  grand- 
mother was  too  old  to  understand  rightly  about  it ; 
for  she  could  no  longer  hear  well,  while  she  could  not 
see  at  all. 

The  Aim-Uncle  showed  himself  no  longer  at  Peter's 
hut ;  it  was  a  good  thing  that  it  had  been  so  well 
repaired,  for  it  remained  for  a  long  time  untouched. 

The  blind  grandmother  now  began  the  day  with 
sighs,  and  not  one  passed  that  she  did  not  say  sor- 
rowfully :  — 

"Ah!  with  the  child  all  joy  and  good  have  been 
taken  away  from  us,  and  the  days  are  so  empty  !  If 
I  could  only  hear  Heidi's  voice  once  more  before  I 
die  I" 


CHAPTER    VI 

A    NEW    CHAPTER   AND    ENTIRELY    NEW    SCENES 

In  the  house  of  Herr  Sesemann,  in  Frankfurt,  reclined 
the  little  sick  daughter,  Klara,  in  her  comfortable  wheel 
chair.  She  spent  the  whole  day  in  it  and  was  pushed 
from  one  room  to  another.  She  was  now  in  the  so-called 
library,  next  the  large  dining-room,  and  here  all  sorts  of 
articles  were  scattered  about  for  comfort,  showing  that 
it  was  used  as  the  living-room.  From  the  beautiful, 
large  bookcase  one  could  see  how  it  had  been  named, 
and  that  it  was  the  place  where  the  little  lame  girl 
received  her  daily  instruction. 

Klara  had  a  pale,  thin  face,  out  of  which  looked  two  . 
gentle  blue  eyes,  at  this  moment  directed  toward  the 
large  wall  clock,  which  seemed  to  go  unusually  slow ; 
for  Klara,  who  was  hardly  ever  impatient,  now  said  with 
some  uneasiness  :  — 

"  Is  n't  it  time  yet,  Fraulein  Rottenmeier  ? " 

Fraulein  Rottenmeier  sat  very  upright  in  a  little  sew- 
ing-chair and  was  embroidering.  She  wore  a  mysterious 
wrap,  a  large  cape,  or  sort  of  cloak,  which  gave  her  a 
solemn  appearance,  and  was  accentuated  by  a  kind  of 
high  dome,  which  she  had  on  her  head.  Fraulein 
Rottenmeier,  since  the  death  of  Klara's  mother  many 
years  before,  had  been  in  charge  of  everything  in  the 

80 


A    NEW  CHAPTER   AND  NEW  SCENES  81 

Sesemann  household.  Herr  Sesemann  was  away  most 
of  the  time  and  left  the  whole  house  in  Fraulein  Rot- 
tenmeier's  care,  but  with  the  condition  that  his  little 
daughter  should  have  a  voice  in  everything,  and  that 
nothing  should  be  done  contrary  to  her  wishes. 

While  Klara,  with  signs  of  impatience,  was  for  the 
second  time  asking  Fraulein  Rottenmeier  whether  it 
was  not  time  for  the  expected  guests  to  arrive,  Dete, 
holding  Heidi  by  the  hand,  was  standing  at  the  entrance 
door  below,  asking  the  coachman  Johann,  who  had  just 
jumped  down  from  the  carriage,  whether  she  might  ven- 
ture to  disturb  Fraulein  Rottenmeier  at  so  late  an  hour. 

"  That  is  not  my  business,"  growled  the  coachman  ; 
"  ring  for  Sebastian,  inside  there  in  the  corridor," 

Dete  did  as  he  told  her ;  and  the  butler,  with  big 
buttons  on  his  coat  and  round  eyes  almost  as  big  in  his 
head,  came  down  the  stairs. 

"  I  would  like  to  ask  whether  I  may  venture  to  dis- 
turb Fraulein  Rottenmeier  at  this  hour." 

"That  is  not  my  business,"  answered  the  butler; 
"  ring  the  other  bell  for  the  maid  Tinette  " ;  and  without 
further  information  Sebastian  disappeared. 

Dete  rang  again.  This  time  the  maid  Tinette  ap- 
peared on  the  stairs,  with  a  little  cap,  dazzlingly  white, 
on  the  middle  of  her  head  and  a  scornful  expression  on 
her  face. 

"  What  is  it  .^ "  she  asked  from  the  stairs,  without 
coming  down.  Dete  repeated  her  request.  Tinette 
disappeared,  but  soon  came  back  again  and  called  down 
the  stairs :  — 


82  HEIDI 

"  You  are  expected." 

Dete,  with  Heidi,  then  went  up  the  stairs  and,  follow- 
ing Tinette,  entered  the  library.  Here  Dete  remained 
politely  standing  by  the  door ;  she  still  held  Heidi  fast 
by  the  hand,  for  she  was  not  quite  sure  what  the  child 
might  take  it  into  her  head  to  do  in  this  strange  place. 

Fraulein  Rottenmeier  slowly  rose  from  her  seat  and 
came  nearer,  in  order  to  scrutinize  the  newly  arrived 
companion  for  the  daughter  of  the  house.  Her  appear- 
ance did  not  seem  to  please  her.  Heidi  had  on  her 
plain  cotton  dress  and  her  old  crushed  straw  hat.  Her 
eyes  peered  forth  very  innocently  from  under  it  and 
looked  with  unconcealed  amazement  at  the  construction 
on  the  lady's  head. 

"  What  is  your  name  .''  "  asked  Fraulein  Rottenmeier, 
after  having  looked  searchingly  for  some  minutes  at  the 
child,  who  never  took  her  eyes  away  from  her. 

"  Heidi,"  she  replied  distinctly,  in  a  ringing  voice. 

"  What  .'*  what  .-*  That  can  surely  be  no  Christian 
name.  Then  you  can't  have  been  baptized.  What 
name  was  given  you  in  baptism  .■" "  asked  Fraulein 
Rottenmeier  further. 

"That  I  do  not  know,"  replied  Heidi. 

"  What  an  answer  !  "  exclaimed  the  lady,  shaking  her 
head.     "  Dete,  is  the  child  foolish  or  pert  .■' " 

"  If  the  lady  will  allow  me,  I  will  speak  for  the  child, 
for  she  is  very  inexperienced,"  said  Dete,  after  she  had 
given  Heidi  a  little  nudge  on  the  sly  for  her  unbecoming 
answer.  "  She  is  neither  foolish  nor  pert,  for  she  knows 
nothing  about  it ;  she  means  just  what  she  says.     But 


A    NEW  CHAPTER   AND  NEW  SCENES  83 

this  is  the  first  time  she  has  ever  been  in  a  gentleman's 
house,  and  she  knows  nothing  about  good  manners ; 
she  is  willing  and  quick  to  learn  if  the  lady  will  have 
forbearance.  She  was  baptized  Adelheid,  like  her 
mother,  my  late  sister." 

"Well  !  that  is  a  name  that  can  be  pronounced," 
observed  Fraulein  Rottenmeier.  "  But,  Dete,  I  must 
tell  you  that  she  is  a  remarkable-looking  child  for  her 
age.  I  informed  you  that  Fraulein  Klara's  companion 
must  be  of  her  age,  in  order  to  pursue  the  same  studies 
with  her  and,  especially,  to  share  her  occupations.  Frau- 
lein Klara  is  more  than  twelve  years  old  ;  how  old  is 
this  child  >.  " 

"  With  the  lady's  permission,"  Dete  began  again,  "  I 
can't  quite  recollect  just  how  old  she  is  ;  to  be  sure,  she 
must  be  somewhat  younger,  but  not  very  much.  I  can't 
say  exactly ;  but  she  may  be  about  the  tenth  year,  or 
nearly  that,  I  should  think." 

"  I  am  eight  now ;  grandfather  said  so,"  explained 
Heidi.  The  aunt  nudged  her  again  ;  but  Heidi  had  not 
the  least  suspicion  why  and  was  not  at  all  embarrassed. 

"  What .-'  Only  eight  years  old  !  "  exclaimed  Fraulein 
Rottenmeier  with  some  indignation.  "  Four  years  too 
little  !  What  does  it  mean  ?  What  have  you  learned .-' 
And  what  books  have  you  studied  ?  " 

"  None,"  said  Heidi. 

"  What  ?  what  ?  How  did  you  learn  to  read  then  ? " 
asked  the  lady  again. 

"  I  have  never  learned  to  read ;  neither  has  Peter," 
stated  Heidi. 


84  HEIDI 

"  Good  gracious  !  you  cannot  read  !  You  really  can- 
not read  !  "  exclaimed  Fraulein  Rottenmeier  with  the 
greatest  horror.  "  Is  it  possible  that  you  are  unable  to 
read  ?     What  have  you  learned,  then  ?  " 

"Nothing,"  said  Heidi  in  strict  accordance  with  the 
truth. 

"  Dete,"  said  Fraulein  Rottenmeier,  after  some  min- 
utes, in  which  she  tried  to  compose  herself ;  "  this  is 
not  according  to  the  agreement.  How  could  you  bring 
me  this  creature  }  " 

But  Dete  was  not  so  easily  abashed ;  she  answered 
eagerly :  — 

"  If  the  lady  will  allow  me,  the  child  is  exactly  what 
I  thought  the  lady  wanted ;  the  lady  explained  to  me 
that  she  must  be  quite  different  and  not  at  all  like  other 
children,  and  so  I  brought  this  little  one  ;  for  the  larger 
ones  among  us  are  not  so  different,  and  I  thought  this 
one  answered  the  description  perfectly.  But  I  must  be 
going.  My  mistress  is  expecting  me;  if  she  will  allow 
me,  I  will  come  again  soon  and  see  how  she  gets 
along." 

With  a  courtesy  Dete  went  out  of  the  door  and  down 
the  stairs  as  fast  as  she  could  go.  Fraulein  Rottenmeier 
stood  still  for  a  moment,  then  ran  after  Dete.  It  sud- 
denly occurred  to  her  that  she  wished  to  talk  with  the 
aunt  about  a  number  of  things  if  the  child  was  really 
going  to  remain  ;  and  here  she  was,  and,  as  she  saw, 
the  aunt  was  determined  to  leave  her. 

Heidi  remained  on  the  spot  by  the  door  where 
she  had  stood  from  the  first.     Until  then  Klara  had 


A    NEW  CHAPTER  AND  NEW  SCENES  85 

watched  everything  in  silence  from  her  chair.  Now 
she  beckoned  to  Heidi:  — 

"  Come  here !  " 

Heidi  went  to  the  wheel  chair, 

"  Would  you  rather  be  called  Heidi  or  Adelheid  ?  " 
asked  Klara. 

"  My  name  is  Heidi  and  nothing  else,"  was  Heidi's 
reply. 

"  Then  I  will  always  call  you  so,"  said  Klara.  "  I 
like  the  name  for  you ;  I  have  never  heard  it  before, 
but  I  have  never  seen  a  child  before  that  looks  like  you. 
Have  you  always  had  such  short,  curly  hair.!*" 

"  Yes,  I  think  so,"  answered  Heidi. 

"  Did  you  want  to  come  to  Frankfurt }  "  asked  Klara 
again. 

"  No ;  but  to-morrow  I  am  going  back  home  again 
to  carry  the  grandmother  some  white  rolls,"  explained 
Heidi. 

"You  are  a  strange  child!"  said  Klara.  "They 
have  brought  you  to  Frankfurt  expressly  to  stay  with 
me  and  study  with  me,  and  you  see  now  it  will  be  very 
funny,  because,  you  don't  know  how  to  read  at  all,  and 
there  will  be  something  entirely  new  in  the  study  hours. 
It  has  often  been  so  frightfully  tedious,  and  it  seems  as 
if  the  morning  would  never  end.  You  see,  the  Herr 
Kandidat  comes  every  morning  at  ten  o'clock,  and 
then  the  lessons  begin  and  last  until  two,  and  it  is  so 
long  !  The  Herr  Kandidat  often  puts  his  book  close  to 
his  face,  as  if  he  had  suddenly  grown  nearsighted,  but 
he  is  only  yawning  frightfully  behind  it,  and  Fraulein 


86  HEIDI 

Rottenmeier,  too,  takes  out  her  big  handkerchief  every 
now  and  then  and  buries  her  whole  face  in  it  as  if  she 
were  very  much  affected  by  what  we  are  reading ;  but 
I  know  perfectly  well  that  she  is  only  yawning  terribly. 
Then  I  want  to  yawn  so  badly,  but  I  have  to  swallow  it 
down,  for  if  I  yawn  only  one  single  time  Fraulein  Rot- 
tenmeier brings  the  cod-liver  oil  and  says  I  am  getting 
faint.  Cod-liver  oil  is  the  very  worst  thing  to  take,  so 
I  prefer  to  smother  the  yawns.  But  now  it  will  be 
less  wearisome,  for  I  can  listen  while  you  learn  to 
read." 

Heidi  shook  her  head  quite  thoughtfully  when  she 
heard  about   learning  to  read. 

"  But,  Heidi,  you  must  learn  to  read,  of  course  ;  every 
one  has  to,  and  the  Herr  Kandidat  is  very  good  —  he  is 
never  cross,  and  he  will  explain  everything  to  you. 
But  you  see,  when  he  explains  anything,  if  you  don't 
understand  at  all  about  it  you  must  just  wait  and  say 
nothing,  or  else  he  will  explain  a  great  deal  more  and 
you  will  understand  still  less.  But  afterwards,  when 
you  have  learned  something  and  know  it,  then  you  will 
understand  what  he  meant." 

Just  then  Fraulein  Rottenmeier  came  into  the  room  ; 
she  had  not  succeeded  in  calling  Dete  back  and  was 
evidently  disturbed  by  it,  for  she  had  not  been  able 
to  tell  her  exactly  in  what  respect  the  child  was  not 
according  to  the  agreement,  and  since  she  did  not 
know  what  to  do  to  retrace  her  steps  she  was  all  the 
more  agitated,  as  she  herself  had  proposed  the  whole 
thing. 


A    NEW  CHAPTER  AND  NEW  SCENES  87 

She  went  from  the  library  to  the  dining-room,  and 
from  there  back  again,  and  then  immediately  turned 
round  and  went  to  Sebastian,  who  passed  his  round 
eyes  thoughtfully  over  the  table,  which  was  already  laid, 
to  see  if  there  was  any  fault  to  be  found  with  his  work. 

"  Think  your  great  thoughts  to-morrow,  and  to-day 
get  ready  for  us  to  come  to  the  table." 

With  these  words  Fraulein  Rottenmeier  passed  by 
Sebastian  and  called  Tinette  in  such  an  ungracious 
tone  that  she  came  mincing  along  with  even  shorter 
steps  than  usual,  and  stood  before  her  with  such  a 
mocking  face  that  Fraulein  Rottenmeier  herself  did 
not  dare  to  speak  angrily  to  her;  so  her  irritation 
increased  within  her. 

"  The  little  visitor's  room  is  to  be  put  in  order, 
Tinette,"  said  the  lady  with  forced  calmness ;  "  every- 
thing is  ready,  but  the  furniture  needs  to  be  dusted." 

"  It  is  well  worth  while,"  said  Tinette,  sneeringly, 
and  went  out. 

Meanwhile  Sebastian  had  opened  the  double  doors 
of  the  library  with  considerable  noise,  for  he  was  very 
angry,  but  did  not  dare  to  give  vent  to  his  feelings  in 
words  before  Fraulein  Rottenmeier;  he  then  went 
quite  calmly  into  the  library  to  push  out  the  wheel 
chair.  While  he  was  arranging  the  handle  at  the  back 
of  the  chair  Heidi  placed  herself  in  front  of  him  and 
fixed  her  eyes  upon  himi  He  noticed  it  and  suddenly 
burst  forth :  — 

"  Now  what  is  there  so  extraordinary  to  look  at  .■* " 
he  growled  at  Heidi,  in  a  way  he  would  not  have  spoken 


88 


HEIDI 


if  he  had  seen  Fraulein  Rottenmeier.    She  was  just  com- 
ing into  the  room  when  Heidi  replied  :  — 
"You  look  just  like  Peter,  the  goatherd." 
The  lady  clasped  her  hands  in  horror.     "  Is  it  possi- 


ble !  "  she  groaned  half  aloud.  "  She  is  saying  thou  to 
the  servants  !  The  creature  lacks  the  most  primitive 
ideas ! " 

The  chair  came  rolling  along,  and  Klara  was  placed 
by  Sebastian  at  the  table. 

Fraulein  Rottenmeier  sat  next  her  and  beckoned  to 


A   NEW  CHAPTER  AND  NEW  SCENES  89 

Heidi  to  take  the  place  opposite.  No  one  else  came 
to  the  table,  and  as  the  three  sat  far  apart,  there  was 
plenty  of  room  for  Sebastian  to  serve  his  dishes.  Next 
Heidi's  plate  lay  a  lovely  white  roll;  the  child  cast 
longing  looks  at  it.  The  resemblance  which  Heidi 
had  discovered  must  have  aroused  her  entire  confidence 
in  Sebastian,  for  she  sat  as  still  as  a  mouse  and  did  not 
move  until  he  held  out  the  large  tray  and  offered  her 
the  fried  fish  ;  then  she  pointed  to  the  roll  and  said  :  — 

"  Can  I  have  that .?  " 

Sebastian  nodded  and  glanced  at  Fraulein  Rotten- 
meier,  for  he  wondered  what  impression  the  question 
would  make  on  her.  In  a  twinkling  Heidi  seized  her 
roll  and  put  it  into  her  pocket.  Sebastian  made  up  a 
lace  to  keep  from  laughing,  for  he  knew  very  well  that 
it  was  not  allowable.  He  remained  standing  silently 
by  Heidi,  for  he  did  not  dare  to  speak,  and  neither  did 
he  dare  to  move  away  until  he  was  bidden.  Heidi 
looked  at  him  for  some  time  in  amazement,  and  then 
asked :  — 

"  Shall  I  eat  some  of  that } " 

Sebastian  nodded  again. 

"Then  give  me  some,"  she  said,  looking  calmly  at 
her  plate. 

Sebastian's  face  grew  very  thoughtful,  and  the  tray 
in  his  hand  began  to  tremble  dangerously. 

"  You  can  put  the  tray  on  the  table  and  come  back 
again  later,"  said  Fraulein  Rottenmeier,  looking  severely 
at  him. 

Sebastian  at  once  disappeared. 


90  HEIDI 

"  As  for  you,  Adelheid,  I  must  positively  give  you 
some  ideas  ;  I  see  that,"  continued  Fraulein  Rotten- 
meier  with  a  deep  sigh.  "  In  the  first  place,  I  will 
tell  you  how  to  behave  at  the  table";  and  the  lady  ex- 
plained clearly  and  minutely  everything  that  Heidi  had 
to  do.  "Then,"  she  went  on,  "  I  must  impress  it  upon 
you  particularly  that  you  are  not  to  speak  to  Sebastian 
at  the  table,  unless  you  have  some  order  to  give,  or 
some  necessary  question  to  ask." 

She  then  told  her  how  she  was  to  address  the  differ- 
ent members  of  the  household,  ending  with:  "  Klara  will 
tell  you  how  she  wishes  you  to  call  her." 

"  Klara,  of  course,"  said  the  little  invalid. 

Then  followed  a  multitude  of  instructions  about  ris- 
ing in  the  morning  and  going  to  bed,  about  coming  in 
and  going  out,  about  shutting  doors,  and  about  orderli- 
ness in  general.  Meantime  Heidi's  eyes  closed,  for  she 
had  been  up  since  five  o'clock  and  had  taken  a  long 
journey.  She  leaned  back  in  her  chair  and  fell  asleep. 
When  Fraulein  Rottenmeier  finally  came  to  the  end  of 
her  instructions,  she  said  :  — 

"  Now  think  this  all  over !  Have  you  understood 
everything  .-* " 

"  Heidi  has  been  asleep  for. a  long  time,"  said  Klara, 
looking  much  amused  ;  the  supper  hour  had  not  passed 
so  quickly  in  a  long  time. 

"  I  never  in  all  my  life  saw  the  like  of  this  child  ! " 
exclaimed  Fraulein  Rottenmeier  in  great  vexation  ;  and 
she  rang  the  bell  so  violently  that  Tinette  and  Sebastian 
both  came  rushing  in  together.    In  spite  of  all  the  con- 


A   NEW  CHAPTER  AND  NEW  SCENES  91 

fusion  Heidi  did  not  wake,  and  they  had  the  greatest 
difficulty  in  arousing  her  sufficiently  to  get  her  to  her 
sleeping-room, -first  through  the  library,  then  through 
Klara's  bedroom  and  Fraulein  Rottenmeier's,  to  the 
corner  chamber,  which  was  now  ready  for  the  little 
girl. 


CHAPTER   VII 

FRAULEIN   ROTTENMEIER    HAS    AN    UNCOMFORT- 
ABLE DAY 

When  Heidi  awoke,  on  her  first  morning  in  Frank- 
furt, she  could  not  understand  what  she  saw.  She 
rubbed  her  eyes  hard,  then  looked  up  again  ;  everything 
was  the  same.  She  was  sitting  in  a  high  white  bed 
in  a  large  room  ;  where  the  light  came  in,  hung  long, 
long  white  curtains  ;  near  by  stood  two  chairs  with  large 
flowers  on  them ;  then  there  was  a  sofa  with  the  same 
flowers,  and  a  round  table  in  front  of  it,  and  in  the  cor- 
ner was  a  wash-stand  on  which  were  things  that  Heidi 
had  never  seen  before. 

Suddenly  she  remembered  that  she  was  in  Frankfurt, 
and  everything  that  had  happened  the  day  before  came 
back  to  her  mind  ;  and  finally  she  recalled  quite  clearly 
the  lady's  instructions,  as  far  as  she  had  heard  them, 

Heidi  jumped  from  the  bed  and  dressed  herself. 
She  went  first  to  one  window  and  then  to  the  other,  for 
she  wanted  to  see  the  sky  and  earth  outside ;  she  felt 
as  if  she  were  in  a  cage  behind  the  long  curtains.  She 
could  not  push  them  aside,  so  she  crawled  in  behind 
them  in  order  to  reach  the  window.  But  this  was  so 
high  that  her  head  hardly  came  up  far  enough  to  let 
her  see  out.     Heidi  did  not  find  what  she  was  looking 

92 


AN  UNCOMFORTABLE   DAY  93 

for.  She  ran  from  one  window  to  the  other  and  then 
back  again ;  but  there  was  always  the  same  thing  be- 
fore her  eyes,  —  walls  and  windows,  and  then  walls  and 
then  windows  again. 

This  puzzled  her.  It  was  still  early  in  the  morning, 
for  she  was  accustomed  to  rise  betimes  on  the  Aim, 
and  then  to  run  outdoors  immediately  to  see  if  the 
sky  was  blue  and  the  sun  already  up ;  if  the  fir  trees 
were  murmuring,  and  the  blue  flowers  had  opened  their 
eyes.  As  a  little  bird,  placed  for  the  first  time  in  a 
handsome,  glittering  cage,  flies  back  and  forth  and 
tries  every  bar  to  see  if  it  cannot  slip  between  and  fly 
out  and  regain  its  freedom,  so  Heidi  kept  running 
from  one  window  to  the  other,  trying  to  open  them, 
for  she  felt  that  there  must  be  something  to  be  seen 
besides  walls  and  windows  ;  she  felt  sure  that  the 
ground  underneath,  with  the  green  grass  and  the  last 
melting  snow  on  the  cliffs,  must  come  into  sight,  and 
she  longed  to  see  it. 

But  the  windows  remained  firmly  closed,  no  matter 
how  hard  the  child  tugged  and  pulled  and  tried  to  get 
her  little  fingers  under  the  sash.  After  some  time, 
when  she  found  that  her  exertions  were  of  no  avail,  she 
gave  up  the  plan  and  wondered  how  it  would  be  if  she 
were  to  go  outdoors  and  around  behind  the  house  until 
she  should  come  to  some  grass,  for  she  remembered 
that  the  evening  before  she  had  walked  over  nothing 
but  stones  in  front  of  the  house.  There  was  a  knock 
at  the  door,  and  Tinette  immediately  thrust  her  head 
in  and  said  curtly:  — 


9+  HEIDI 

"  Breakfast  's  ready  !  " 

Heidi  did  not  in  the  least  understand  that  these 
words  meant  an  invitation ;  Tinette's  scornful  face 
seemed  to  warn  her  not  to  come  too  near  her  rather 
than  to  give  a  friendly  summons,  and  Heidi  understood 
this  and  acted  accordingly.  She  took  the  little  foot- 
stool out  from  under  the  table,  placed  it  in  a  corner, 
sat  down  on  it,  and  waited  to  see  what  would  happen. 
After  some  time  she  heard  a  bustling,  and  Fraulein 
Rottenmeier,  again  in  a  state  of  irritation,  came  and 
called  into  Heidi's  room  :  — 

"  What  is  the  matter  with  you,  Adelheid  ?  Don't 
you  understand  what  breakfast  means  .-'    Come  down  !  " 

Heidi  understood  this,  and  at  once  followed  her. 

Klara  had  been  sitting  some  time  in  her  place  in  the 
dining-room  and  gave  Heidi  a  friendly  greeting.  She 
looked  much  more  contented  than  usual,  for  she  expected 
all  sorts  of  strange  things  to  happen  that  day.  The 
breakfast  passed  without  any  disturbance ;  Heidi  ate 
her  bread  and  butter  properly  enough,  and  after  the 
meal  was  over  Klara  was  rolled  back  into  the  library. 
Heidi  was  bidden  by  Fraulein  Rottenmeier  to  follow 
and  remain  with  Klara  until  the  Herr  Kandidat  came 
to  begin  the  lessons.  When  the  two  children  were 
alone  Heidi  said  at  once :  — 

"  How  do  you  see  outdoors  and  'way  down  to  the 
ground  here .'' " 

"We  open  the  window  and  look  out,"  replied  Klara, 
amused  at  the  question. 

"  But  the  windows  don't  open,"  said  Heidi  sadly. 


AN  UNCOMFORTABLE  DAY  95 

"Well!  well!"  exclaimed  Klara,  "you  can't  open 
them,  and  I  can't  help  you  ;  but  when  you  see  Sebastian, 
he  will  open  one  for  you." 

It  was  a  great  relief  to  Heidi  to  know  that  the 
windows  could  open  and  that  she  could  look  out,  for 
her  room  had  seemed  to  her  like  a  prison. 

Klara  then  began  to  ask  Heidi  about  her  home;  and 
Heidi  was  delighted  to  tell  her  about  the  Aim,  the 
goats,  and  the  pasture,  and  everything  she  was  so 
fond  of. 

In  the  mean  time  the  Herr  Kandidat  arrived ;  but 
Fraulein  Rottenmeier  did  not  take  him  as  usual  into 
the  library,  for  she  wished  to  talk  with  him  first,  and 
so  asked  him  into  the  dining-room,  where  she  sat  down 
in  front  of  him,  and  in  great  excitement  described  her 
embarrassing  situation,  and  how  it  had  come  about. 

She  had  written  some  time  before  to  Herr  Sesemann 
in  Paris,  where  he  was  staying,  that  his  daughter  had 
for  a  long  time  desired  to  have  a  companion  in  the 
house,  and  that  she  herself  believed  that  it  would  be  an 
incentive  to  Klai-a  in  the  study  hours,  and  give  her 
stimulating  society  the  rest  of  the  time.  In  reality  the 
plan  was  a  very  desirable  one  for  Fraulein  Rottenmeier 
herself,  as  she  was  anxious  to  have  some  one  there  to 
relieve  her  from  entertaining  the  sick  girl  —  a  task  which 
was  often  too  much  for  her.  Herr  Sesemann  had  re- 
plied that  he  would  willingly  grant  his  daughter's  wish, 
but  with  the  condition  that  her  playmate  should  be  in 
every  way  as  Klara's  equal ;  for  he  would  have  no  chil- 
dren tormented  in  his  house  —  "a  really  very  unneces- 


96   ,  HEIDI 

sary  remark  from  Herr  Sesemann,  for  who  wants  to 
torment  children  ? " 

She  then  went  on  to  tell  the  Herr  Kandidat  how 
terribly  disappointed  she  had  been  in  the  child,  and 
related  all  the  strange  things  she  had  done  since  she 
had  been  in  the  house,  proving  not  only  that  he  would 
have  literally  to  begin  his  instruction  with  the  alphabet, 
but  that  she,  too,  had  to  commence  at  the  very  begin- 
ning in  every  kind  of  training.  She  saw  only  one  way 
out  of  these  unfortunate  circumstances,  and  that  was 
for  the  Herr  Kandidat  to  declare  that  two  children  so 
different  could  not  be  taught  together  without  great 
harm  to  the  advanced  pupil ;  this  \yould  be  a  sufficient 
reason  to  Herr  Sesemann  for  putting  an  end  to  the 
matter  and  allowing  the  child  to  be  immediately  sent 
back  where  she  came  from  ;  she  would  not  dare  to 
undertake  this  without  his  consent,  because  the  master 
of  the  house  knew  that  the  child  had  come. 

But  the  Herr  Kandidat  was  very  discreet  and  never 
one-sided  in  his  judgment. 

He  spoke  many  consoling  words  to  Fraulein  Rotten- 
meier  and  gave  the  opinion  that  if  the  young  girl  was 
backward  in  one  way  she  might  be  so  advanced  in  other 
ways  that  with  well-regulated  instruction  they  would  be 
brought  into  harmony.  When  Fraulein  Rottenmeier 
saw  that  the  Herr  Kandidat  did  not  favor  her,  but 
would  undertake  to  teach  A-B-C's,  she  opened  the  door 
into  the  library  for  him,  and  after  he  had  gone  in  closed 
it  quickly  behind  him  and  remained  on  the  other  side, 
for  she  had  a  horror  of  A-B-C's. 


AN  UNCOMFORTABLE    DAY  97 

She  strode  up  and  down  the  room,  considering  how 
the  servants  should  address  Adelhe  id.  Herr  Sesemann 
had  written  that  she  must  be  treated  as  his  daughter; 
and  this  command  had  to  be  carried  out,  especially  in 
regard  to  the  servants,  thought  Fraulein  Rottenmeier. 
But  she  was  not  able  to  meditate  long  without  inter- 
ruption, for  suddenly  from  the  library  came  a  fright- 
ful crash  as  of  something  falling,  and  then  a  call  to 
Sebastian  for  help.  She  rushed  into  the  room.  There 
on  the  floor  everything  lay  in  a  heap  —  books,  copy- 
books, inkstand,  and  on  t  *p  of  all  the  rest  the  table- 
cover,  from  underneath  lich  a  stream  of  ink  flowed 
across  the  whole  length  of  the  room. 

Heidi  had  disappeared. 

"Just  look  at  that !"  exclaimed  Fraulein  Rottenmeier, 
wringing  her  hands..  "Table-cover,  books,  and  work- 
basket,  all  in  the  ink !  Such  a  thing  never  happened 
before  !  There 's  no  doubt  about  it,  it  is  that  wretched 
creature  ! " 

The  Herr  Kandidat  stood  in  perfect  dismay  gazing  at 
the  destruction  which  could  be  regarded  only  in  one  light, 
as  very  disturbing.  Klara,  on  the  other  hand,  watched 
the  unusual  occurrence  and  its  result  with  a  look  of  per- 
fect delight  and  simply  said  by  way  of  explanation  :  — 

"  Yes,  Heidi  did  it,  but  not  on  purpose ;  she  really 
must  not  be  blamed ;  she  was  only  in  such  a  fearful 
hurry  to  get  away,  and  pulled  the  cover  with  her,  and 
so  everything  fell  with  it  to  the  floor.  Several  carriages 
went  by,  one  after  the  other,  so  she  rushed  out ;  perhaps 
she  had  never  seen  a  coach  before." 


98  HEIDI 

"  There,  is  n't  it  just  as  I  told  you,  Herr  Kandidat  ? 
The  creature  hasr.'t  an  idea  about  anything!  not  a 
suspicion  what  a  lesson  hour  is,  that  she  ought  to  sit 
still  and  listen.  But  where  is  the  unlucky  child  ?  If 
she  has  run  away,  what  would  Herr  Sesemann  say 
to  me  ?  " 

Fraulein  Rottenmeier  darted  out  and  down  the  stairs. 
There  in  the  open  doorway  stood  Heidi,  looking,  quite 
perplexed,  up  and  down  the  street. 

"What  is  it  ?  What  k  the  matter  with  you  ?  Why 
have  you  run  away  .-*  "  demi  ided  Fraulein  Rottenmeier 
of  the  little  girl. 

"  I  heard  the  fir  trees  roar,  but  I  don't  know  where 
they  are,  and  I  don't  hear  them  any  longer,"  answered 
Heidi,  looking  blankly  in  the  direction  where  the 
rolling  of  the  carriages  had  died  away,  a  noise  which 
in  Heidi's  ears  seemed  like  the  raging  of  the  wind  in 
the  firs,  so  that  she  had  followed  the  sound  in  the 
highest  glee. 

"  Firs !  Are  we  in  the  woods  ?  What  a  notion ! 
Come  up  and  see  what  you  have  done ! " 

Whereupon  Fraulein  Rottenmeier  went  upstairs  again ; 
Heidi  followed  her  and  was  very  much  astonished  to  see 
the  great  damage  done,  for  in  her  delight  and  haste  to 
hear  the  fir  trees  she  had  not  noticed  what  she  was 
dragging  after  her. 

"  You  have  done  that  once  ;  you  must  not  do  it 
again,"  said  Fraulein  Rottenmeier,  pointing  to  the  floor; 
"  when  you  are  having  lessons  you  must  sit  still  in  your 
chair  and  pay  attention.     If  you  cannot  do  it  by  your- 


AN  UNCOMFORTABLE  DAY  99 

self,  I  shall  have  to  fasten  you  to  your  seat.  Do  you 
understand  ? " 

"  Yes,"  replied  Heidi,  "and  I  will  sit  still  now";  for 
she  began  to  comprehend  what  she  was  expected  to  do. 

Tinette  and  Sebastian  by  this  time  had  to  come  to 
put  the  room  in  order,  and  the  Herr  Kandidat  went 
away,  for  all  further  teaching  had  to  be  given  up. 
There  had  been  no  excuse  for  yawning  that  morning. 

In  the  afternoon  Klara  always  had  to  rest  a  long 
time,  and  Heidi  could  then  busy  herself  as  she  pleased; 
so  Fraulein  Rottenmeier  had  explained  to  her  in  the 
morning.  When  Klara  had  lain  down  to  rest  in  her 
chair  after  dinner,  Fraulein  Rottenmeier  went  to  her 
room.  Heidi  was  glad  to  have  the  time  to  herself,  for 
she  had  in  her  mind  a  plan  which  she  was  anxious  to 
undertake,  but  she  would  be  obliged  to  have  help  about 
it.  Therefore  she  placed  herself  in  the  middle  of  the 
hall,  in  front  of  the  dining-room,  in  order  that  the 
person  she  wished  to  see  might  not  escape  her.  Sure 
enough,  in  a  little  while  Sebastian  came  up  the  stairs 
with  the  large  tea  tray,  bringing  the  silver  up  from 
the  kitchen  to  put  away  in  the  china  closet.  When 
he  reached  the  last  stair  Heidi  stepped  up  to  him, 
saying :  — 

"  I  would  like  to  ask  you  something,"  and  added,  as 
if  to  pacify  him,  "  but  it  is  really  not  wrong,  as  it  was 
this  morning";  for  she  noticed  that  he  looked  a  little 
cross,  and  she  thought  it  was  on  account  of  the  ink  on 
the  carpet. 

Sebastian  then  laughed  so  loud  that  Heidi  looked 


100  HEIDI 

at  him  in  amazement,  for  she  had  n't  noticed  anything 
amusing. 

"All  right,  go  ahead,  Mamsell." 

"  My  name  is  n't  Mamsell,"  said  Heidi,  a  little  vexed 
in  her  turn  ;  "  my  name  is  Heidi." 

"  That 's  all  right ;  Fraulein  Rottenmeier  told  me  to 
call  you  so,"  explained  Sebastian, 

"  Did  she  }  Well,  then,  I  must  be  called  so,"  said 
Heidi  resignedly ;  for  she  had  noticed  that  everything 
had  to  be  as  Fraulein  Rottenmeier  said, 

"Now  I  have  three  names,"  she  added  with  a  sigh. 

"What  did  the  little  Mamsell  want  to  ask.?"  said 
Sebastian  as  he  went  into  the  dining-room  and  was 
putting  away  the  silver  in  the  closet. 

"  How  do  you  open  the  windows,  Sebastian .-'  " 

"  This  way,"  he  replied,  pushing  up  one  of  the  large 
windows. 

Heidi  went  to  it,  but  she  was  too  small  to  be  able  to 
see  anything ;  she  reached  only  to  the  window  sill, 

"  There ;  now  the  little  girl  can  look  out  and  see 
what  there  is  below,"  said  Sebastian,  bringing  a  high 
wooden  stool  and  setting  it  down.  Heidi  climbed  up 
with  great  delight,  and  was  able  at  last  to  take  the 
longed-for  look  out  the  window.  But  she  immediately 
drew  her  head  in,  evidently  much  disappointed. 

"  There  is  nothing  to  see  at  all  but  the  stony 
street,"  said  the  child  mournfully ;  "  if  you  go  clear 
round  the  house,  what  do  you  see  on  the  other  side, 
Sebastian.-* " 

"Just  the  same,"  was  the  answer. 


AN  UNCOMFORTABLE  DAY  101 

"  But  where  do  you  go  to  see  way  down  across  the 
whole  valley?" 

"  You  have  to  climb  up  into  some  high  church  tower, 
like  the  one  over  there  with  the  golden  dome  above  it. 
From  up  there  you  can  see  away  off  ever  so  far." 

Then  Heidi  quickly  climbed  down  from  the  stool, 
ran  out  of  the  door,  down  the  stairs,  and  went  out  into 
the  street.  But  she  did  not  find  it  as  she  imagined  it 
would  be.  When  she  saw  the  tower  through  the  win- 
dow, she  fancied  she  would  only  have  to  go  across  the 
street  and  it  would  be  just  in  front  of  her.  She  went 
down  the  entire  length  of  the  street,  but  without  com- 
ing to  the  tower,  and  she  could  no  longer  see  it  any- 
where ;  and  she  came  to  another  street  and  then  another, 
and  so  on,  but  still  she  did  not  see  the  tower.  A  great 
many  persons  passed  her,  but  they  were  all  in  such  a 
hurry  that  Heidi  thought  they  had  no  time  to  tell  her 
anything  about  it.  Finally  she  saw  a  boy  standing  on 
the  corner  of  the  next  street  ;  he  was  carrying  a  small 
hand  organ  on  his  back  and  a  very  strange  animal  in 
his  ^rms.     Heidi  ran  up  to  him  and  asked  :  — 

"  Where  is  the  tower  with  the  golden  dome  at  the 
very  top.? " 

"Don't  know,"  was  the  answer. 

"Who  can  tell  me  then  where  it  is.''"  asked  Heidi 
again. 

"  Don't  know." 

"  Don't  you  know  any  other  church  with  a  high  tower.? " 

"  Certainly  I  know  one." 

"  Come  and  show  me  where  it  is." 


102  HEIDI 

"  Show  me  first  what  you  will  give  me  if  I  do." 

The  boy  held  out  his  hand.  Heidi  searched  in  her 
pocket.  She  drew  out  a  little  picture,  on  which  was 
painted  a  garland  of  red  roses ;  she  looked  at  it  for  a 
little  while,  for  she  disliked  to  part  with  it.  That  very 
morning  Klara  had  given  it  to  her ;  but  to  look  down 
into  the  valley,  across  the  green  slopes ! 

*•  There,"  said  Heidi,  holding  out  the  picture  to  him  ; 
"will  you  take  that.?  " 

The  boy  drew  his  hand  back  and  shook  his  head. 

"What  do  you  want,  then.-*"  asked  Heidi,  delighted 
to  put  her  picture  back  into  her  pocket. 

"Money." 

"  I  have  n't  any,  but  Klara  has,  and  she  will  give  me 
some  ;  how  much  do  you  want.?  " 

"Twenty  pfennigs." 

"  Well,  then,  come  along." 

The  two  accordingly  went  through  a  long  street,  and 
on  the  way  Heidi  asked  her  companion  what  he  was 
carrying  on  his  back,  and  he  explained  that  under  the 
cloth  he  had  an  organ  which  made  wonderful  music 
when  he  turned  the  handle.  Suddenly  they  came  to 
an  old  church  with  a  high  tower ;  the  boy  stood  still 
and  said :  — 

"There!" 

"  But  how  can  I  get  in  ?"  asked  Heidi  when  she 
found  that  the  doors  were  closed. 

"  Don't  know,"  was  the  answer. 

"  Do  you  think  I  could  ring  here  as  I  do  for  Sebas- 
tian?" 


AN  UNCOMFORTABLE  DAY  103 

"  Don't  know." 

Heidi  had  noticed  a  bell  in  the  wall  and  now  pulled 
it  with  all  her  might. 

"  If  I  go  up  there  you  must  wait  down  here,  for  I 
don't  know  the  way  back,  and  you  must  show  me." 

"  What  will  you  give  me  if  I  do.-* " 

"  What  shall  I  have  to  give  you,  then.? " 

"  Twenty  pfennigs  more." 

A  key  was  turned  in  the  old  lock  on  the  inside,  and 
the  creaking  door  opened ;  an  old  man  stepped  out  and 
looked  at  first  surprised  and  then  rather  angrily  at  the 
children  and  said  :  — 

"  How  did  you  dare  to  ring  for  me  to  come  down .-' 
Can't  you  read  what  it  says  under  the  bell.-'  'For 
those  who  wish  to  ascend  the  tower.'  " 

The  boy  pointed  to  Heidi  and  said  not  a  word. 

Heidi  replied :  "  I  want  to  go  up  into  the  tower." 

"What  do  you  want  to  do  up  there.-*"  asked  the 
tower-keeper.     "Did  some  one  send  you  here.''" 

"  No,"  answered  Heidi.  "  I  only  want  to  go  up  so 
that  I  can  look  down." 

"  Go  home,  and  don't  play  any  more  tricks  on  me, 
or  you  won't  get  off  so  easily  another  time  ! "  Where- 
upon the  tower-keeper  turned  round  and  was  about  to 
shut  the  door,  but  Heidi  held  him  by  the  coat-tail  and 
said  pleadingly:  — 

"  Only  just  this  once !  " 

He  looked  around,  and  Heidi's  eyes  gazed  up  at  him 
so  beseechingly  that  he  quite  changed  his  mind ;  he 
took  hold  of  the  child's  hand  and  said  in  a  kindly  tone :  — 


104  HEIDI 

"  If  you  are  so  anxious  to  go,  come  with  me." 

The  boy  sat  down  on  the  stone  step  in  front  of  the 
door  and  signified  that  he  did  not  care  to  go  with 
them. 

Heidi,  holding  the  tower-keeper's  hand,  climbed  many, 
many  steps,  which  grew  smaller  and  smaller  ;  finally  she 
went  up  an  extremely  narrow  staircase,  and  then  she 
was  at  the  top.  The  keeper  lifted  Heidi  up  and  held 
her  to  the  open  window. 

"There,  now  look  down,"  he  said. 

Heidi  saw  below  her  a  sea  of  roofs,  towers,  and 
chimneys.  She  drew  her  head  back  quickly  and  said 
in  a  tone  of  disappointment :  — 

"  It  is  not  at  all  what  I  thought  it  would  be." 

"  Is  that  so  }  What  does  a  little  girl  like  you  know- 
about  a  view  }  Well,  now  come  down,  and  don't  ring 
at  a  church  door  again  !  " 

The  k^e'eper  put  Heidi  on  the  floor  and  started  down 
the  narrow  stairs  in  front  of  her.  On  the  left,  where 
they  began  to  grow  wider,  there  was  a  door  which  opened 
into  the  keeper's  room  ;  close  by,  where  the  floor  ex- 
tended out  under  the  sloping  roof,  stood  a  large  basket, 
and  in  front  of  it  sat  a  big  gray  cat,  growling,  for  in  the 
basket  lived  her  family,  and  she  wished  to  warn  ev^y 
passer-by  not  to  disturb  her  domestic  arrangements. 
Heidi  stood  still  and  looked  amazed,  for  she  had  never 
seen  such  a  huge  cat  before;  in  the  old  tower  there 
lived  whole  flocks  of  mice,  so  the  cat  had  no  difficulty 
in  catching  half  a  dozen  little  ones  every  day. 

The  tower-keeper  noticed  Heidi's  surprise  and  said :  — 


AN  UNCOMFORTABLE  DAY  105 

"  Come,  you  may  look  at  the  kittens ;  she  won't 
hurt  you  while  I  am  here." 

Heidi  went  toward  the  basket  and  screamed  with 
delight. 

"  Oh,  the  cunning  little  creatures !  the  lovely  kit- 
tens ! "  she  exclaimed  again  and  again,  running  back 
and  forth  around  the  basket,  in  order  to  watch  the 
amusing  frolic  and  play  of  seven  or  eight  little  kittens 
as  they  crawled  and  jumped  and  tumbled  over  one 
another. 

"Would  you  like  one.!*"  asked  the  tower-keeper, 
pleased  to  see  Heidi  dance  with  delight, 

"  For  my  own.-*  To  keep  always .-^  "  asked  Heidi,  ex- 
cited and  hardly  able  to  believe  in  such  good  luck. 

"  Yes,  to  be  sure  ;  you  can  have  more  than  one  — you 
can  have  them  all,  if  you  have  room  for  them,"  said  the 
man,  glad  of  a  chance  to  dispose  of  the  kittens  without 
having  to  harm  them.  .  ' 

Heidi  was  highly  delighted.  The  kittens  would  have 
so  much  room  in  the  big  house,  and  how  surprised  and 
pleased  -  Klara  would  be  when  the  pretty  creatures 
arrived ! 

"  But  how  can  I  carry  them.-* "  asked  Heidi,  and  was 
going  to  take  some  of  them  up  in  her  hands  at  once, 
but  the  big  cat  jumped  up  on  her  arm  and  growled  so 
fiercely  that  she  drew  back  greatly  frightened. 

"  I  will  bring  them  to  you,  only  tell  me  where,"  said 
the  keeper,  stroking  the  old  cat  to  make  her  good- 
natured  again,  for  she  was  his  friend  and  had  lived  in 
the  tower  with  him  for  a  good  many  years. 


106 


HEIDI 


"  To  Herr  Sesemann's  big  house.  There  is  a  golden 
head  of  a  dog  with  a  big  ring  in  his  mouth  on  the  front 
door,"  explained  Heidi. 

This  detail  was  superfluous,  for  the  tower-keeper  had 
sat  in  the  tower  for  many  long  years  and  knew  every 
house  far  and  wide ;  besides,  Sebastian  was  an  old 
acquaintance  of  his. 

"  I  know  where  it  is,"  he  remarked  ;  "  but  whom  shall 

I  bring  the  things  to,  and 
whom  shall  I  ask  for.?  You 
don't  belong  to  Herr  Sese- 
mann,  do  you.?  " 

"  No  ;  but  Klara  will  be  so 
delighted  to  have  the  kit- 
tens ! " 

The  tower-keeper  was 
ready  to  go  on  down  the 
stairs,  but  Heidi  could  hardly 
tear  herself  away  from  the 
entertaining  spectacle. 
"If  I  could  only  carry  one  or  two  with  me  —  one 
for  myself  and  one  for  Klara  !   Why  can't  I.?  " 

"  Well,  wait  a  little,"  said  the  keeper ;  and  he  carried 
the  old  cat  carefully  into  his  little  room,  put  her  into 
the  cupboard,  shut  the  door,  and  came  back :  "  There, 
now  take  two  !  " 

Heidi's  eyes  shone  with  delight.  She  chose  a  white 
kitten  and  a  striped  yellow  and  white  one,  and  put  one 
in  her  right  pocket  and  the  other  in  the  left.  Then 
she  went  down  the  stairs. 


AN  UNCOMFORTABLE   DAY  107 

The  boy  was  still  sitting  on  the  steps  outside,  and 
when  the  keeper  had  closed  the  door  after  Heidi  she 
said  :  — 

"Which  is  the  way  to  Herr  Sesemann's  house?" 

"Don't  know,"  was  the  answer. 

Heidi  then  began  to  describe,  as  well  as  she  knew 
how,  about  the  front  door,  the  windows,  and  the  steps ; 
but  the  boy  shook  his  head ;  he  knew  nothing  about  it. 

"You  see,"  Heidi  went  on,  "out  of  one  window 
you  look  at  a  big,  big  gray  house,  and  the  roof  goes 
so";  and  with  her  forefinger  she  described  a  sharp 
point  in  the  air. 

Then  the  boy  jumped  up ;  all  he  needed  was  some 
such  sign  in  order  to  find  the  way.  He  started  off  on 
the  run  and  Heidi  after  him,  and  in  a  short  time  they 
stood  directly  in  front  of  the  door  with  the  big  brass 
knocker.  Heidi  rang  the  bell.  Sebastian  soon  ap- 
peared, and  when  he  saw  Heidi  he  exclaimed  urg- 
ently :  — 

"Quick!    quick!" 

Heidi  ran  in  in  great  haste,  and  Sebastian  closed  the 
door ;  he  had  not  noticed  the  boy  standing  disappointed 
outside. 

"Quick,  Mamsell ! "  urged  Sebastian  again;  "go 
right  into  the  dining-room ;  they  are  already  at  the 
table.  Fraulein  Rottenmeier  looks  like  a  loaded  can- 
non ;  but  what  made  the  little  Mamsell  run  away  so.-"  " 

Heidi  went  into  the  dining-room.  Fraulein  Rotten- 
meier did  not  look  up,  and  Klara  said  nothing ;  there 
was  an  uncomfortable  silence.     Sebastian  pushed  up 


,108  HEIDI 

Heidi's  chair.  When  she  was  once  seated  in  her 
place,  Fraulein  Rottenmeier  began  with  a  stern  face 
and  a  very  solemn  voice  :  — 

"  Adelheid,  I  will  talk  with  you  later ;  now  I  have 
only  this  to  say :  you  have  behaved  very  badly,  and 
really  deserve  to  be  punished  for  leaving  the  house 
without  askings  permission,  without  any  one  knowing 
a  thing  about  it,  and  wandering  about  until  so  late  in 
the  day ;  I  never  heard  of  such  conduct." 

"  Meow,"  sounded  as  the  apparent  answer. 

Then  the  lady  grew  angry  :  — 

"  What,  Adelheid,"  she  exclaimed,  raising  her  voice, 
**  after  such  behavior,  do  you  dare  to  play  a  naughty 
trick.''     You  had  better  be  very  careful,  I  assure  you  !  " 

"  I  did  n't,"  began  Heidi. 

*'  Meow  !  meow  !  " 

Sebastian  put  his  tray  down  on  the  table  and  rushed 
out  of  the  room. 

"  That  is  enough,"  Fraulein  Rottenmeier  tried  to  say ; 
but  she  was  so  excited  that  her  voice  no  longer  sounded. 

"  Get  up  and  leave  the  room  !  " 

Heidi,  much  frightened,  rose  from  her  chair  and  tried 
once  more  to  explain. 

"  I  really  did  n't  "  — 

"Meow!  meow!  meow!" 

"But,  Heidi,"  said  Klara,  "when  you  see  how  angry 
you  are  making  Fraulein  Rottenmeier,  why  do  you  keep 
saying  *  meow '}" 

"  I  am  not  doing  it  ;  it  is  the  kittens,"  Heidi  at  last 
was  able  to  say  without  interruption. 


AN  UNCOMFORTABLE   DAY  109 

"What?  what?  cats?  kittens?"  screamed  Fraulein 
Rottenmeier.  "  Sebastian  !  Tinette  !  Find  the  horri- 
ble creatures  and  take  them  away  ! " 

Whereupon  the  lady  rushed  into  the  library  and  fas- 
tened the  door  in  order  to  be  safe,  for  to  Fraulein  Rot- 
tenmeier kittens  were  the  most  dreadful  things  in  the 
world.  Sebastian  was  standing  outside  the  door  and 
had  to  stop  laughing  before  he  could  enter  the  room 
again.  While  he  was  serving  Heidi,  he  had  noticed  a 
little  cat's  head  peeping  out  of  her  pocket,  and  when  it 
began  to  meow  he  could  hardly  contain  himself  long 
enough  to  set  his  tray  on  the  table.  At  last  he  was 
able  to  go  back  calmly  into  the  room,  some  time  after 
the  distressed  lady  had  called  for  help.  Everything 
was  then  perfectly  quiet  and  peaceful ;  Klara  was  hold- 
ing the  kittens  in  her  lap,  Heidi  was  kneeling  by  her 
side,  and  both  were  playing  to  their  great  delight  with 
the  two  tiny,  graceful  creatures. 

"  Sebastian,"  said  Klara  as  he  entered,  "  you  must 
help  us ;  you  must  find  a  bed  for  the  kittens  where 
Fraulein  Rottenmeier  will  not  see  them,  for  she  is 
afraid  of  them,  and  will  have  them  taken  away  ;  we 
want  to  keep  the  cunning  things  and  bring  them  out 
whenever  we  are  alone.     Where  can  you  put  them  ?  " 

"  I  will  take  care  of  them,  Fraulein  Klara,"  replied 
Sebastian  willingly ;  "  I  will  make  a  fine  bed  for  them 
in  a  basket,  and  put  it  where  the  timid  lady  will  never 
come  ;  just  leave  it  all  to  me." 

Sebastian  went  on  with  his  work,  chuckling  to  him- 
self all  the  while,  for  he  thought  :  "  This  is  n't  the  last 


110  HEIDI 

of  it  !  "  and  he  did  not  at  all  dislike  to  see  Fraulein  Rot- 
tenmeier  a  little  distressed. 

Some  time  after,  when  it  was  almost  time  to  go  to 
bed,  Fraulein  Rottenmeier  opened  the  door  a  very  little 
way  and  called  through  the  crack  :  — 

"  Have  the  horrible  creatures  been  taken  away  ?  " 

"  Yes,  indeed  !  Yes,  indeed  !  "  answered  Sebastian, 
who  had  kept  busy  in  the  room,  expecting  this  question. 
Quickly  and  quietly  he  took  the  two  kittens  out  of 
Klara's  lap  and  disappeared  with  them. 

Fraulein  Rottenmeier  deferred  until  the  following 
day  the  especial  scolding  which  she  had  intended  to 
give  Heidi ;  for  she  felt  too  exhausted  that  night,  after 
all  the  preceding  emotions  of  vexation,  anger,  and  fright, 
which  in  turn  Heidi  had  unconsciously  provoked  in  her. 
She  drew  back  in  silence,  and  Klara  and  Heidi  followed 
quite  content,  for  they  knew  their  kittens  were  in  a 
good  bed. 


CHAPTER   VIII 

DISTURBANCES   IN   THE   SESEMANN   HOUSE 

On  the  following  morning  Sebastian  had  no  sooner 
opened  the  front  door  for  the  Herr  Kandidat  and 
ushered  him  into  the  library  than  some  one  else  rang 
the  bell,  but  with  such  force  that  Sebastian  rushed 
down  the  stairs  with  all  his  might,  for  he  thought:  — 

"  No  one  rings  like  that  except  Herr  Sesemann  him- 
self ;  he  must  have  come  home  unexpectedly." 

He  pulled  open  the  door ;  a  ragged  boy  with  a  hand 
organ  on  his  back  stood  before  him. 

"  What  do  you  mean  ?  "  said  Sebastian  to  him.  "  I 
will  teach  you  how  to  pull  doorbells !  What  do  you 
want  here .''  " 

"  I  want  to  see  Klara,"  was  the  reply. 

"  You  dirty  street  urchin,  you !  can't  you  say  '  Frau- 
lein  Klara,'  as  the  rest  of  us  do }  What  have  you  to  do 
with  Fraulein  Klara } "  asked  Sebastian  savagely. 

"  She  owes  me  forty  pfennigs,"  explained  the  boy. 

**  You  are  certainly  not  right  in  your  mind !  How 
do  you  know,  anyway,  that  there  is  such  a  person  as 
Fraulein  Klara  here  }  " 

"  I  showed  her  the  way  yesterday;  that  makes  twenty 

pfennigs ;  and  then  I  showed  her  the  way  back  again ; 

that  makes  twenty  more !  " 

III 


112  HEIDI 

"  You  see  what  a  fib  you  are  telling ;  Fraulein  Klara 
never  goes  out ;  she  is  not  able  to  go  out.  Get  you 
gone  where  you  belong  before  I  start  you ! " 

But  the  boy  was  not  at  all  frightened ;  he  remained 
calmly  standing  still  and  said  coolly:  — 

"  But  I  saw  her  on  the  street.  I  can  describe  her ; 
she  had  short,  curly  black  hair,  and  her  eyes  are  black, 
and  her  dress  brown,  and  she  does  n't  talk  as  we  do." 

"  Oho !"  thought  Sebastian,  chuckling  to  himself; 
"that  is  the  little  Mamsell,  who  has  been  in  more 
mischief."     Then  he  said,  pulling  the  boy  in:  — 

"  You  're  quite  right ;  follow  me  and  wait  at  the  door 
until  I  come  out  again.  If  I  let  you  come  in,  you  must 
play  something ;  it  will  please  Fraulein  Klara." 

He  went  upstairs,  knocked  at  the  library  door,  and 
was  called  in. 

"  There  is  a  boy  here  who  wishes  to  see  Fraulein 
Klara  herself,"  announced  Sebastian. 

Klara  was  very  much  delighted  at  this  unusual 
occurrence. 

"He  may  come  right  in,"  she  said;  "may  he  not, 
Herr  Kandidat,  if  he  wants  to  speak  to  me .''  " 

The  boy  soon  entered  the  room,  and,  according  to  his 
instructions,  he  immediately  began  to  play  his  organ. 
In  order  to  avoid  the  A-B-C's,  Fraulein  Rottenmeier 
was  busying  herself  with  all  sorts  of  things  in  the 
dining-room.  Suddenly  she  stopped  to  listen.  Did 
the  sound  come  from  the  street  .-•  and  so  near  }  How 
could  the  sound  of  a  hand  organ  come  from  the  library  } 
And  yet — really  !    She  rushed  through  the  long  dining- 


DISTURBANCES  IN  THE  SESEMANN  HOUSE      113 

room  and  threw  open  the  door.  There,  —  she  could 
hardly  believe  it,  —  there  in  the  middle  of  the  library 
stood  a  ragged  organ-grinder,  playing  his  instrument 
most  diligently.  The  Herr  Kandidat  seemed  trying 
to  say  something,  but  the  words  failed  to  come.  Klara 
and  Heidi  were  listening  with  beaming  faces  to  the 
music. 

"  Stop !  stop  immediately  !  "  exclaimed  Fraulein  Rot- 
tenmeier,  coming  into  the  room.  Her  voice  was  drowned 
by  the  music.  Then  she  ran  toward  the  boy,  but  sud- 
denly she  felt  something  between  her  feet ;  she  looked 
on  the  floor ;  a  horrible  black  creature  was  crawling 
under  her  skirts  —  a  turtle.  Fraulein  Rottenmeier 
jumped  in  the  air  as  she  had  not  done  before  for  many 
years,  then  screamed  at  the  top  of  her  voice :  — 
-    "  Sebastian  !  Sebastian  !  " 

Suddenly  the  organ-grinder  stopped,  for  this  time  her 
voice  was  heard  above  the  music.  Sebastian,  doubled 
up  with  laughter,  stood  outside  the  half-open  door,  for 
he  had  seen  the  jump  Fraulein  Rottenmeier  made. 
Finally  he  entered.  Fraulein  Rottenmeier  had  thrown 
herself  into  a  chair. 

"  Away  with  them  both,  the  boy  and  that  creature ! 
Send  them  away  immediately,  Sebastian  ! "  she  cried  to 
him.  Sebastian  readily  obeyed.  He  led  out  the  boy, 
who  had  quickly  seized  his  turtle,  then  pressing  some- 
thing into  his  hand  he  said:  — 

"  Forty  for  Fraulein  Klara,  and  forty  for  playing. 
You  did  well " ;  whereupon  he  closed  the  door. 

Quiet  was  once  more  restored  in  the  library;  the 


114  HEIDI 

studies  were  resumed,  and  Fraulein  Rottenmeier  had 
settled  herself  in  the  room,  in  order  that  her  presence 
might  prevent  a  similar  dreadful  occurrence.  After  the 
study  hours  she  intended  to  investigate  the  case  and 
punish  the  guilty  one,  so  that  it  would  not  be  forgotten. 

Soon  there  came  another  knock  at  the  door,  and 
Sebastian  again  came  in  with  the  information  that  a 
large  basket  had  been  brought,  which  was  to  be  given 
immediately  to  Fraulein  Klara  herself. 

"To  me.-*"  asked  Klara  in  surprise  and  curious  to 
know  what  it  might  be  ;  "  let  me  see  at  once  what  it 
looks  like." 

Sebastian  brought  in  a  covered  basket  and  then 
hastened  away. 

"  I  think  you  had  better  finish  your  studies  first  and 
then  open  the  basket,"  remarked  Fraulein  Rottenmeier. 

Klara  could  not  imagine  what  had  been  sent  to  her; 
she  gazed  with  longing  eyes  at  the  basket. 

"  Herr  Kandidat,"  she  said,  stopping  short  while  she 
was  declining  a  word,  "  may  I  not  take  just  one  little 
peep  to  see  what  is  in  the  basket  and  then  go  right  on 
with  my  lessons  } " 

"  From  one  point  of  view  I  might  be  in  favor  of  it, 
from  another  against  it,"  replied  the  Herr  Kandidat; 
"  the  reason  for  it  would  be  that  if  your  whole  attention 
is  directed  toward  this  object  "  — 

His  remark  could  not  be  finished.  The  cover  of  the 
basket  was  not  fastened,  and  suddenly,  one,  two,  three, 
and  then  two,  and  then  even  more  little  kittens  jumped 
out  into  the  room  and  began  to  scamper  around  so 


DISTURBANCES  IN   THE  SESEMANN  HOUSE      115 


unaccountably  fast  that  it  seemed  as  if  the  whole  room 
were  full  of  the  tiny  creatures.  They  jumped  over  the 
Herr   Kandidat's   boots,   bit  his  trousers,   climbed   up 


I  1  '^ 


^*^^y 

-<jj. 

a 

-w 

~ 

Fraulein  Rottenmeier's  dress,  crawled  around  her  feet, 
leaped  up  into  Klara's  chair,  scratched,  groped  about, 
and  mewed ;    it  was  utter  confusion. 

Klara  was  perfectly  enraptured  and  kept  exclaim- 
ing:— 

"  Oh,  what  cunning  little  creatures  !      How  gayly  they 


116  HEIDI 

jump  about!  See!  Look,  Heidi,  here,  there!  Look 
at  that  one  !  " 

Heidi  with  deHght  ran  after  them  into  every  corner. 
The  Herr  Kandidat,  hindered  from  going  on  with  his 
teaching,  stood  by  the  table,  lifting  first  one  foot  and 
then  the  other  to  avoid  the  annoyance.  Fraulein  Rot- 
tenmeier  at  first  sat  speechless  with  horror ;  then  she 
began  to  scream  at  the  top  of  her  voice :  — 

"  Tinette  !  Tinette  !  Sebastian  !  Sebastian  ! "  She 
did  not  even  dare  to  rise  from  her  chair,  lest  all  the 
dreadful  little  creatures  might  jump  at  her  at  once. 

Finally  Sebastian  and  Tinette  answered  her  repeated 
calls  for  help  and  put  the  kittens,  one  after  another, 
back  into  the  basket  and  carried  them  to  the  bed  made 
for  the  two  kittens  that  had  arrived  the  night  before. 

This  day  again  there  had  been  no  opportunity  for 
yawning  during  the  study  hours.  Late  in  the  evening, 
when  Fraulein  Rottenmeier  had  recovered  sufficiently 
from  the  excitement  of  the  morning,  she  called  Sebas- 
tian and  Tinette  up  into  the  library  to  make  a  thorough 
investigation  of  the  disgraceful  proceedings.  Then  it 
came  out  that  Heidi,  in  her  expedition  of  the  previous 
day,  had  been  the  cause  of  all  that  had  happened. 
Fraulein  Rottenmeier  sat  there  pale  with  anger,  and 
at  first  could  find  no  words  to  express  her  feelings. 
She  made  a  sign  for  Sebastian  and  Tinette  to  leave  the 
room.  She  then  turned  to  Heidi,  who  was  standing  by 
Klara's  chair  and  had  no  idea  what  wrong  she  had 
done. 

"Adelheid,"  she  began  in  a  severe  voice,  "I  know 


DISTURBANCES  IN   THE   SESEMANN  HOUSE      117 

only  one  punishment  which  could  have  any  effect  on  you, 
for  you  are  a  barbarian ;  but  we  shall  see  whether  you 
will  not  become  civilized  down  in  the  dark  cellar  with 
lizards  and  rats,  so  that  you  will  never  let  such  things 
happen  again." 

Heidi  listened  calmly  and  wonderingly  to  her  sen- 
tence, for  she  had  never  been  in  a  frightful  cellar ;  the 
room  adjoining  the  Aim  hut,  which  her  grandfather 
called  the  cellar,  and  where  the  cheese  and  fresh  milk 
were  kept,  was  a  pleasant,  inviting  place,  and  she  had 
never  seen  any  rats  and  lizards. 

But  Klara  raised  great  objections  to  this  :  — . 

"  No,  no,  Fraulein  Rottenmeier,  you  must  wait  until 
papa  is  here  ;  he  has  already  written  that  he  is  coming 
soon,  and  I  will  tell  him  everything ;  then  he  will  say 
what  is  to  be  done  with  Heidi." 

Fraulein  Rottenmeier  dared  make  no  objection  to 
this  decision.     She  rose,  saying  somewhat  bitterly :  — 

"Very  well,  Klara,  very  well,  but  I  too  shall  have 
a  word  to  say  to  Herr  Sesemann." 

Whereupon  she  left  the  room. 

Then  followed  two  or  three  peaceful  days,  but  Frau- 
lein Rottenmeier  did  not  get  over  her  distress  ;  the  dis- 
appointment she  had  felt  in  Heidi  kept  coming  before 
her  eyes,  and  it  seemed  to  her  that  since  the  little  girl 
made  her  appearance  in  the  Sesemann  house  every- 
thing had  gone  wrong  and  could  never  again  be  set 
right. 

Klara  was  well  contented  ;  the  days  no  longer  seemed 
dull.     It  was  Heidi  who  made  the  study  hours  pass 


118  HEIDI 

quickly.  The  alphabet  always  confused  her  and  she 
could  never  learn  it.  When  the  Herr  Kandidat  was  in 
the  midst  of  explaining  and  writing  the  forms  of  the 
letters,  and  in  order  to  make  them  clearer,  compared 
one  to  a  little  horn  and  another  to  a  beak,  she  would 
exclaim  with  delight :  "  It  is  a  goat !  "  or  "  It  is  the 
robber-bird  !  "  The  description  awakened  all  sorts  of 
thoughts  in  her  brain,  but  no  idea  of  the  alphabet. 

In  the  late  afternoon  hours  Heidi  would  again  sit 
beside  Klara  and  tell  her  all  about  the  Aim  and  her 
life  there,  until  her  longing  for  it  became  so  intense 
that  she  would  cry  out :  — 

"  I  really  must  go  home  now  !  To-morrow  I  really 
must  go !  " 

But  Klara  always  quieted  these  attacks  and  showed 
Heidi  that  she  must  surely  remain  until  her  papa  came 
home ;  then  they  would  see  what  would  happen. 

One  happy  prospect  Heidi  secretly  enjoyed  caused 
her  to  yield  and  become  contented  once  more.  This 
was,  that  every  day  she  remained  she  would  be  able  to 
add  two  more  rolls  for  the  grandmother.  Every  noon 
and  night  beside  her  plate  lay  a  lovely  white  roll, 
which  she  immediately  put  into  her  pocket,  for  she 
could  not  eat  the  bread  when  she  thought  how  the 
grandmother  had  none  at  all  and  was  hardly  able  any 
longer  to  eat  the  hard  black  bread. 

Every  day  after  dinner  Heidi  sat  for  two  long  hours 
quiet  and  alone  in  her  room,  for  she  was  not  allowed  to 
run  outdoors  in  Frankfurt  as  she  did  on  the  Aim  ;  she 
understood  this  now  and  never  did  it  any  more.    Neither 


DISTURBANCES  IN   THE   SESEMANN  HOUSE       119 

did  she  dare  to  talk  to  Sebastian  in  the  dining-room,  for 
Fraulein  Rottenmeier  had  forbidden  that  also,  and  she 
never  dreamed  of  speaking  to  Tinette,  whom  she  always 
avoided,  for  Tinette  spoke  to  her  in  a  scornful  tone 
and  was  continually  laughing  at  her,  and  Heidi  under- 
stood her  perfectly.  So  Heidi  sat  thinking  to  herself 
how  the  Aim  was  growing  green  again,  how  the  yellow 
flowers  were  glistening  in  the  sunshine,  and  how  bright 
everything  was  —  the  snow  and  the  mountains  and  the 
whole  wide  valley.  She  often  felt  as  if  she  could  not 
bear  it  any  longer,  so  great  was  her  yearning  to  be 
there.  Her  aunt  had  told  her,  moreover,  that  she 
might  go  home  whenever  she  liked. 

So  it  happened  that  one  day  she  packed  up  her  rolls 
in  great  haste  in  the  big  red  neckerchief,  put  on  her 
straw  hat  and  started.  But  at  the  very  door  she  en- 
countered Fraulein  Rottenmeier  just  returning  from  a 
walk.  She  stood  still  and  in  blank  amazement  gazed 
at  Heidi  from  top  to  toe,  and  her  eyes  rested  especially 
on  the  full  red  handkerchief.    Then  she  broke  forth  :  — 

"  What  kind  of  an  expedition  is  this  }  What  does  it 
mean  .-'  Have  I  not  strictly  forbidden  you  to  go  wan- 
dering about  again  }  Now  you  are  trying  to  start  out 
another  time,  and  looking  for  air  the  world  like  a 
tramp." 

"  I  am  not  going  to  wander  about ;  I  only  want  to  go 
home,"  replied  Heidi,  frightened. 

**  What  .-*  what }  go  home }  You  want  to  go  home  }  " 
Fraulein  Rottenmeier  wrung  her  hands  in  her  agita- 
tion.    "  Run  away !     If    Herr   Sesemann  knew  that ! 


120  HEIDT 

Run  away  from  his  house  !  Don't  let  him  ever  hear 
of  it !  And  what  is  it  that  does  n't  suit  you  in  his 
house  ?  Are  you  not  better  treated  than  you  deserve  ? 
Is  there  anything  you  need?  Have  you  ever  in  your 
whole  life  had  a  home,  or  a  table  or  the  service  that 
you  have  here  ?     Tell  me  !  " 

"  No,"  replied  Heidi. 

'•  I  know  that  perfectly  well,"  continued  the  lady  in 
great  excitement.  "  You  lack  nothing,  nothing  at  all ; 
you  are  the  most  ungrateful  child  I  ever  heard  of,  and 
you  don't  know  how  well  off  you  are." 

Then  all  Heidi's  pent-up  feelings  broke  forth  :  — 

"  Indeed  I  am  going  home,  for  I  have  been  away  so 
long  that  Schneehopli  must  be  crying  for  me  all  the 
time,  and  the  grandmother  is  expecting  me,  and  Distel- 
finck  will  be  beaten  if  Peter  has  no  cheese,  and  here 
you  never  see  how  the  sun  says  good-njght  to  the  moun- 
tains ;  and  if  the  robber-bird  should  fly  over  Frankfurt 
he  would  scream  still  louder,  because  so  many  people 
live  together  and  make  each  other  wicked,  and  do  not 
go  up  on  the  cliffs  where  it  would  be  good  for  them." 

"  Mercy,  the  child  is  crazy ! "  exclaimed  Fraulein 
Rottenmeier ;  and  as  she  darted  in  alarm  up  the  stairs 
she  ran  hard  against  Sebastian,  who  was  coming 
down. 

"  Bring  up  that  miserable  creature  at  once ! "  she 
called  to  him  as  she  rubbed  her  head,  for  she  had 
received  no  gentle  bump. 

"  Yes,  yes,  I  'm  all  right,  thank  you,"  answered  Sebas- 
tian, for  he  had  been  hit  still  harder. 


DISTURBANCES  IN   THE   SESEMANN  HOUSE       121 

Heidi  still  stood,  with  flaming  eyes,  on  the  same  spot, 
and  her  whole  body  trembled  with  excitement. 

"Well,  what  have  you  been  doing  now?"  asked 
Sebastian  gayly  ;  but  when  he  really  saw  that  Heidi  did 
not  move  he  patted  her  kindly  on  the  shoulder  and 
said  comfortingly  :  — 

"  Pshaw !  pshaw !  the  little  Mamsell  must  not  take 
it  so  to  heart ;  just  be  merry,  that  is  the  best  way  !  She 
almost  broke  my  head  just  now,  but  don't  be  frightened  ! 
Well  ?  still  on  the  same  spot  ?  We  must  go  upstairs ; 
she  said  so." 

Heidi  then  went  up  the  stairs,  but  very  slowly  and 
quietly,  and  not  at  all  as  she  was  wont  to  go.  That 
made  Sebastian  feel  sorry.  He  went  behind  her  and 
spoke  encouraging  words  to  her :  — 

"  You  must  n't  give  way  !  You  must  n't  be  so  sad  ! 
Only  be  brave  about  it !  We  have  had  a  very  sensible 
little  Mamsell,  who  has  never  cried  since  she  has  been 
with  us ;  other  little  girls  cry  a  dozen  times  a  day ;  that 
is  well  known.  The  kittens  are  gay,  too,  upstairs  ;  they 
jump  all  around  the  floor  and  act  like  mad.  By  and  by 
shall  we  go  up  there  together  and  look  at  them,  when 
the  lady  in  there  is  away .'' " 

Heidi  nodded  her  head  slightly,  but  so  sadly  that  it 
went  to  Sebastian's  heart,  and  he  looked  at  Heidi  quite 
feelingly  as  she  stole  away  to  her  room. 

At  supper  time  that  day  Fraulein  Rottenmeier  said 
not  a  word,  but  kept  casting  strangely  sharp  glances  at 
Heidi,  as  if  she  expected  she  would  suddenly  do  some 
unheard-of  thing ;  but  Heidi  sat  as  still  as  a  mouse  at 


122  HEIDI 

the  table  and  did  not  stir ;  she  neither  ate  nor  drank ; 
but  she  had  put  her  bread  quickly  into  her  pocket. 

On  the  following  morning,  when  the  Herr  Kandidat 
came  upstairs,  Fraulein  Rottenmeier  motioned  to  him 
secretly  to  come  into  the  dining-room,  and  here  she 
confided  to  him  her  anxiety,  lest  the  change  of  air,  the 
unwonted  manner  of  life,  and  the  new  impressions  had 
driven  the  child  out  of  her  senses ;  and  she  told  him 
how  Heidi  had  tried  to  run  away,  and  repeated  to 
him  as  much  as  she  could  remember  of  her  strange 
words. 

But  the  Herr  Kandidat  calmed  Fraulein  Rottenmeier 
and  assured  her  he  knew  that,  on  the  one  hand,  Adel- 
heid  was  certainly  somewhat  eccentric,  but,  on  the  other 
hand,  she  was  in  her  right  mind,  so  that  gradually,  with 
the  right  kind  of  treatment,  he  would  be  able  to  accom- 
plish ^yhat  he  had  in  view.  He  found  the  case  more 
serious  because  he  had  not  yet  succeeded  in  mastering 
the  alphabet  with  her,  for  she  could  n't  seem  to  grasp 
the  letters. 

Fraulein  Rottenmeier  felt  calmer  and  let  the  Herr 
Kandidat  go  to  his  work.  Late  in  the  afternoon  she  re- 
membered Heidi's  appearance  on  her  intended  journey, 
and  she  determined  to  replenish  the  child's  wardrobe 
with  some  of  Klara's  clothing  before  Herr  Sesemann 
should  appear.  She  consulted  with  Klara  about  it,  and 
as  she  agreed  with  her,  and  wished  to  give  her  a  quan- 
tity of  dresses  and  linen  and  hats,  the  lady  went  to 
Heidi's  room  to  look  into  her  closet  and  to  examine 
the  things  she  already  had,  and  decide  what  should  be 


DISTURBANCES  IN  THE  SESEMANN  HOUSE      123 

kept   and    what  disposed  of.     But  in  a  few  moments 
she  came  back  again,  looking  very  much  disgusted. 

"  What  a  discovery  I  have  made,  Adelheid ! "  she 
exclaimed.  "  I  never  heard  of  such  a  thing  !  In  your 
closet,  a  clothes  closet,  Adelheid,  in  the  bottom  of  this 
closet,  what  do  I  find  1  A  pile  of  little  rolls  !  Bread, 
I  say,  Klara,  in  a  clothes  closet !  And  such  a  pile 
stowed  away !  " 

"Tinette!"  she  then  called  into  the  dining-room, 
"  take  away  the  old  bread  in  Adelheid' s  closet  and  the 
crushed  straw  hat  on  the  table." 

"  No  !  no  !  "  screamed  Heidi ;  "  I  must  have  the  hat, 
and  the  rolls  are  for  the  grandmother  "  ;  and  Heidi  was 
about  to  rush  after  Tinette,  but  was  held  fast  by  Frau- 
lein  Rottenmeier. 

"  Stay  here  and  the  rubbish  will  be  taken  away  and 
put  where  it  belongs,"  she  said  decidedly,  holding  Heidi 
back.  But  Heidi  threw  herself  down  by  Klara's  chair 
and  began  to  cry  in  such  despair,  louder  and  louder, 
and  more  bitterly,  and  sobbed  again  and  again  in  her 
distress :  — 

"  Now  the  grandmother  won't  have  any  rolls.  They 
were  for  the  grandmother ;  now  they  are  all  gone  and 
she  won't  have  any  !  " 

It  seemed  as  if  her  heart  would  break.  Fraulein 
Rottenmeier  ran  out.  Klara  was  alarmed  and  per- 
plexed   by  her  distress. 

"  Heidi,  Heidi,  don't  cry  so  ! "  she  said  imploringly, 
"  only  listen  to  me !  Don't  be  so  troubled ;  see,  I 
promise  you  I  will  give  you  j.ust  as  many  rolls  for  the 


124  HEIDI 

grandmother,  or  even  more,  when  you  go  home,  and 
then  they  will  be  fresh  and  soft,  and  those  would  be- 
come very  hard,  and  were  so  already.  Come,  Heidi, 
don't  cry  so  any  more !  " 

It  was  long  before  Heidi  could  control  her  sobs ; 
but  she  understood  Klara's  comforting  words  and  took 
them  to  heart,  else  would  she  never  have  been  able  to 
stop  crying.  But  she  had  to  be  reassured  of  her  hope 
again  and  again,  and  so  she  kept  asking  Klara,  while 
her  sobs  still  interrupted  her  speech  :  — 

"Will  you  really  give  me,  for  the  grandmother,  just 
as  many  as  I  had  t  " 

And  Klara  kept  saying :  "  Yes,  indeed  I  will,  and 
more,  too ;  so  be  happy  again." 

Heidi  came  to  supper  with  her  eyes  all  red  from 
weeping,  and  when  she  saw  her  piece  of  bread  she  had 
a  fresh  outbreak  of  sobbing ;  but  this  time  she  quickly 
controlled  herself,  for  she  realized  that  she  had  to 
behave  at  meal  times. 

Sebastian  this  time  kept  making  the  most  significant 
gestures  whenever  he  came  near  Heidi ;  he  would  point 
to  his  own  head,  then  to  Heidi's,  then  he  would  nod 
and  wink  as  if  to  make  her  understand :  — 

"  Be  comforted  !  I  have  looked  out  for  everything 
and  made  it  all  right." 

When  Heidi  a  little  later  went  to  her  room,  and  was 
about  to  get  into  bed,  she  found  her  little  crumpled 
straw  hat  hidden  under  the  coverlet.  With  perfect 
delight  she  snatched  the  old  hat  out ;  in  her  joy  she 
crumpled  it  still  more,  and  then,  tying  it  up  in  a  hand- 


DISTURBANCES  IN   THE  SESEMANN  HOUSE      125 

kerchief,  she  thrust  it  down  into  the  deepest  corner  of 
her  closet.  Sebastian  had  hidden  it  under  the  coverlet ; 
he  had  been  in  the  dining-room  at  the  same  time  with 
Tinette  when  she  was  called,  and  he  had  heard  Heidi's 
cry  of  distress.  Then  he  had  followed  Tinette,  and 
when  she  came  out  of  Heidi's  room  with  an  armful  of 
bread,  and  the  hat  on  top  of  it  all,  he  had  snatched  the 
hat,  exclaiming:  — 

"  I  will  take  care  of  that !  " 

So  in  great  delight  he  had  rescued  it  for  Heidi,  and 
that  was  what  he  meant  at  table  by  his  gestures  of 
consolation. 


CHAPTER   IX 

THE   MASTER  OF   THE   HOUSE  HEARS  OF  STRANGE 

DOINGS 

A  FEW  days  after  this  occurrence  there  was  a  great 
bustle  in  the  Sesemann  house,  and  hurried  running  up 
and  down  stairs,  for  the  master  of  the  house  had  just 
returned  from  his  journey.  Sebastian  and  Tinette  were 
bringing  in  one  package  after  another  from  the  well- 
laden  carriage,  for  Herr  Sesemann  always  brought  home 
many  beautiful  things. 

He  went  first  of  all  to  his  daughter's  room  to  greet 
her.  Heidi  was  sitting  beside  her,  for  it  was  late  in 
the  afternoon,  when  the  two  were  always  together. 
Klara  greeted  her  father  with  great  tenderness,  for  she 
loved  him  dearly,  and  the  good  papa  showed  no  less 
affection  toward  his  little  Klara.  Then  he  reached  out 
his  hand  to  Heidi,  who  had  quietly  withdrawn  into  a 
corner,  and  said  kindly  :  — 

"  And  this  is  our  little  Swiss  girl,  I  suppose ;  come 
here  and  give  me  your  hand  !  That 's  right !  Now  tell 
me,  are  you  and  Klara  good  friends  ?  You  do  not  quar- 
rel and  get  cross,  and  then  cry  and  make  up,  and  then 
begin  all  over  again  .■'  " 

**  No,  Klara  is  always  good  to  me,"  replied  Heidi. 

126 


STRANGE  DOINGS  127 

"  And  Heidi  has  never  tried  to  quarrel,  papa,"  quickly 
added  Klara. 

"  That 's  good ;  I  am  glad  to  hear  that,"  said  her 
papa  as  he  rose.  "  But  now  you  must  allow  me,  Klar- 
chen,  to  get  some  luncheon,  for  I  have  had  nothing  to 
eat  to-day.  Later  I  will  come  back  to  you,  and  you 
shall  see  what  I  have  brought  home." 

Herr  Sesemann  went  into  the  dining-room,  where 
Fraulein  Rottenmeier  was  overseeing  the  table  laid  for 
his  midday  meal.  After  Herr  Sesemann  had  sat  down, 
and  the  lady,  looking  like  a  living  picture  of  gloom,  had 
taken  a  seat  opposite  him,  the  master  of  the  house  said 
to  her :  — 

"  Fraulein  Rottenmeier,  what  am  I  to  think .?  You 
have  put  on  a  truly  alarming  face  at  my  return.  What 
is  the  matter }     Klara  is  very  lively," 

"  Herr  Sesemann,"  began  the  lady  with  impressive 
earnestness,  "  Klara  is  also  concerned ;  we  have  been 
frightfully  deceived." 

"How  so.?"  aske.d  Herr  Sesemann,  calmly  sipping 
his  coffee. 

"  We  had  decided,  as  you  know,  Herr  Sesemann,  to 
have  a  companion  for  Klara  in  the  house,  and  as  I  knew 
very  well  how  particular  you  were  to  have  only  good 
and  noble  associates  for  your  daughter,  I  fixed  my  mind 
on  a  young  Swiss  girl,  expecting  to  see  such  a  person 
appear  as  I  had  often  read  about  —  one  who  sprung  up 
in  the  pure  mountain  air,  so  to  speak ;  goes  through  life 
without  touching  the  earth." 

"I  think,"  remarked  Herr  Sesemann,  "that  Swiss 


128  HEIDI 

children  touch  the  earth,  if  they  move  along,  otherwise 
they  would  have  wings  instead  of  feet." 

"Ah,  Herr  Sesemann,  you  know  what  I  mean,"  con- 
tinued the  Fraulein.  "  I  mean  one  of  those  well-known 
forms  living  in  the  pure  mountain  regions,  and  which 
pass  by  us  like  an  ideal  breath." 

"  But  what  would  my  Klara  do  with  an  ideal  breath, 
Fraulein  Rottenmeier .? " 

"  No,  Herr  Sesemann,  I  am  not  joking ;  the  matter 
is  more  serious  to  me  than  you  think ;  I  have  been 
frightfully,  really  quite  frightfully  deceived." 

"  But  how  so  frightfully  }  The  child  does  n't  seem  to 
me  so  very  frightful,"  remarked  Herr  Sesemann  calmly. 

"  You  should  know  just  one  thing,  Herr  Sesemann, 
only  one  —  what  sort  of  people  and  animals  this  creature 
has  filled  your  house  with  in  your  absence ;  the  Herr 
Kandidat  can  tell  you  about  that." 

"  With  animals  }  What  am  I  to  understand  by  that, 
Fraulein  Rottenmeier }  " 

"  It  is  not  to  be  understood  ;  this  creature's  whole 
conduct  is  past  understanding,  except  from  one  point  of 
view,  that  she  has  attacks  of  being  out  of  her  mind," 

Up  to  this  time  Herr  Sesemann  had  not  taken  the 
matter  seriously  ;  but  "out  of  her  mind".?  This  might 
have  serious  consequences  for  his  daughter.  Herr 
Sesemann  looked  at  Fraulein  Rottenmeier  very  closely, 
as  if  he  wished  first  to  assure  himself  that  she  herself 
was  not  troubled  in  that  way.  Just  at  this  moment 
the  door  opened  and  the  Herr  Kandidat  was  ushered  in. 

"Ah,    here    comes    our    Herr    Kandidat,    who    will 


STRANGE   DOINGS  129 

give  us  an  explanation  ! "  exclaimed  Herr  Sesemann  to 
him.  "  Come,  come  and  sit  down  by  me  ! "  and  he 
held  out  his  hand  to  him. 

"  The  Herr  Kandidat  will  drink  a  cup  of  black  coffee 
with  me,  Fraulein  Rottenmeier !  Sit  down,  sit  down  ; 
don't  be  formal !  And  now  tell  me,  my  dear  sir,  what 
is  the  matter  with  the  child  who  has  come  into  my 
house  to  be  a  companion  for  my  daughter,  and  whom 
you  are  teaching.  What  is  the  story  about  her  bring- 
ing animals  into  the  house,  and  what  is  the  matter  with 
her  mind .-'  " 

The  Herr  Kandidat  had  first  to  express  his  pleasure 
at  Herr  Sesemann's  safe  return  and  bid  him  welcome 
home ;  but  Herr  Sesemann  urged  him  to  give  his  opin- 
ion about  the  matter  in  question.  So  the  Herr  Kan- 
didat began  :  — 

"  If  I  were  to  speak  my  mind  about  the  character  of 
this  little  girl,  I  should  first  of  all  make  especial  men- 
tion of  the  fact  that  if,  on  the  one  hand,  she  shows  a 
lack  of  development,  which  through  a  more  or  less  neg- 
lected education,  or,  to  express  it  better,  occasioned  by 
a  somewhat  tardy  instruction,  on  the  contrary,  her  good 
qualities  unquestionably  showing  the  seclusion  of  a  long 
abode  in  the  Alps,  which,  if  it  does  n't  exceed  a  certain 
length  of  time,  without  doubt  has  its  good  side  "  — 

"  My  dear  Herr  Kandidat,"  interrupted  Herr  Sese- 
mann, "  you  are  really  giving  yourself  too  much  trouble ; 
tell  me,  has  the  child  alarmed  you  by  bringing  in  ani- 
mals, and  what  do  you  think  of  her  society  for  my  little 
daughter  ? " 


130  HEIDI 

"  I  don't  wish  in  any  way  to  offend  the  young  girl," 
the  Herr  Kandidat  began  again,  "  for  if  she,  on  the  one 
hand,  shows  a  certain  kind  of  social  inexperience,  due 
to  the  more  or  less  uncultivated  life  in  which  she  moved 
up  to  the  time  of  her  coming  to  Frankfurt,  which 
coming  "  — 

"  Pray  excuse  me,  Herr  Kandidat,  don't  trouble  your- 
self, I  will  —  I  must  hasten  to  look  after  my  daughter." 

Whereupon  Herr  Sesemann  hurried  out  of  the  room 
and  did  not  return.  He  went  into  the  library  and  sat 
down  beside  his  little  daughter ;  Heidi  rose  from  her 
seat.  Herr  Sesemann  turned  toward  the  child,  saying  : 
"  Look  here,  little  girl,  bring  me  —  wait  a  moment  — 
bring  me "  —  Herr  Sesemann  did  not  exactly  know 
what  he  wanted,  but  he  wished  to  send  Heidi  away  for 
a  little  while  ;  "  bring  me  a  glass  of  water." 

"  Fresh  water  ?  "  asked  Heidi. 

"  Yes,  indeed  !  yes,  indeed  !  quite  fresh  !  "  answered 
Herr  Sesemann. 

Heidi  disappeared. 

"  Now,  my  dear  little  Klara,"  said  her  papa,  while 
he  drew  near  to  his  daughter  and  took  her  hand 
in  his,  "  tell  me  clearly  and  distinctly  what  sort  of 
animals  your  companion  brought  into  the  house,  and 
why  Fraulein  Rottenmeier  should  think  that  she  is 
sometimes  not  quite  right  in  her  head ;  can  you  tell 
me  that  ? " 

Klara  was  able  to  do  so,  for  the  worthy  lady  in  her 
horror  had  spoken  to  her  also  about  Heidi's  perplexing 
words,  the  meaning  of  which  was  clear  to  Klara.     She 


STRANGE   DOINGS 


131 


first  told  her  father  about  the  turtle  and  the  kittens, 
and  then  explained  to  him  Heidi's  remark  which  had  so 
shocked  Fraulein  Rottenmeier.  Herr  Sesemann  burst 
into  a  hearty  laugh. 

"  So  you  don't  care  to  have  me  send  the  child  home. 
Klarchen  ;  you  are  not  tired  of  her  ?  "  asked  her  father. 


"No,  no,  papa;  don't  do  that!"  exclaimed  Klara 
imploringly.  "  Since  Heidi  has  been  here  something 
always  happens  every  day,  and  the  time  goes  so  quickly ; 
not  at  all  as  it  did  before  she  came,  when  nothing  ever 
happened !     Heidi  tells  me  so  many  things." 

"  Very  good,  very  good,  Klarchen ;  and  here  comes 
your  little  friend  back  again.     Have  you  brought  cool, 


132  HEIDI 

fresh  water  ?  "  asked  Herr  Sesemann  as  Heidi  offered 
him  a  glass  of  water. 

"  Yes,  fresh  from  the  well,"    replied  Heidi. 

"  Did  you  run  to  the  well  yourself,  Heidi }  "  asked 
Klara, 

"  Yes,  indeed ;  it  is  perfectly  fresh,  but  I  had  to  go 
a  long  way,  for  there  were  so  many  people  at  the  first 
well.  So  I  went  through  the  whole  street,  but  there 
were  just  as  many  people  at  the  second  well ;  then  I 
went  to  another  street,  and  there  I  got  the  water  ;  and 
the  gentleman  with  the  white  hair  sent  his  regards  to 
Herr  Sesemann." 

"  So  your  expedition  was  very  successful  .-•  "  said  Herr 
Sesemann,  laughing ;  "  and  who  is  this  gentleman  .-*  " 

"  He  was  passing  by  the  well,  and  then  stood  still 
and  said  :  '  As  you  have  a  glass,  you  might  give  me  a 
drink  ;  to  whom  are  you  going  to  take  the  water .-' '  And 
I  said  :  *  To  Herr  Sesemann.'  Then  he  laughed  very 
loud  and  told  me  to  give  you  his  regards,  and  also  said  : 
*  Herr  Sesemann  ought  to  enjoy  it.'  " 

"  Who  could  it  have  been  ?  How  did  the  gentleman 
look  .<*"  asked  Herr  Sesemann, 

"He  laughed  pleasantly  and  had  a  big  gold  chain 
and  a  gold  thing  with  a  large  red  stone  hanging  from 
it,  and  there  was  a  horse's  head  on  his  cane." 

"That  is  the  doctor" —  "That  is  my  old  doctor," 
said  Klara  and  her  father  at  the  same  time ;  and  Herr 
Sesemann  laughed  again  to  himself  at  the  thought  of 
his  friend  and  how  he  would  regard  this  new  way  of 
having  his  supply  of  water  brought  to  him. 


STRANGE   DOINGS  133 

That  same  evening,  while  Herr  Sesemann  and  Frau- 
lein  Rottenmeier  were  sitting  alone  in  the  dining-room 
and  talking  over  all  sorts  of  household  matters,  he  told 
her  that  his  daughter's  companion  was  to  remain  in  the 
house ;  he  thought  that  the  child  was  in  a  normal  con- 
dition, and  his  daughter  found  her  society  very  pleas- 
ant and  more  enjoyable  than  any  other. 

"I  wish,  therefore,"  he  added  very  positively,  "to 
have  this  child  always  treated  kindly,  and  that  her 
peculiarities  shall  not  be  considered  as  sins.  If  you 
should  not  be  able  to  deal  with  the  child  alone,  you 
have  the  prospect  of  valuable  assistance,  for  my  mother 
is  coming  very  soon  to  my  house  to  make  a  long  visit, 
and  she  manages  every  one,,  no  matter  how  singu- 
lar they  are.  You  are  well  aware  of  that,  Fraulein 
Rottenmeier  "i " 

"  Yes,  indeed,  I  know  that,  Herr  Sesemann,"  replied 
the  lady,  but  not  with  an  expression  of  relief  at  the 
assured  prospect  of  help. 

Herr  Sesemann  had  only  a  short  time  to  remain  at 
home  now,  and  after  two  weeks  business  called  him 
back  to  Paris,  and  as  his  little  daughter  would  not  con- 
sent to  his  going  away  so  soon„  he  consoled  her  with 
the  promise  of  a  visit  from  her  grandmamma,  who 
might  be  expected  in  a  few  days. 

Herr  Sesemann  had  hardly  left  home  when  a  letter 
came  announcing  that  Frau  Sesemann  had  started  from 
Holstein,  wh^re  she  lived  on  an  old  estate.  She  would 
arrive  at  a  certain  hour  on  the  following  day,  and  the 
carriage  was  to  be  sent  to  the  railway  station  for  her. 


134  HEIDI 

Klara  was  greatly  delighted  by  the  news,  and  told 
Heidi  that  evening  so  much  about  her  grandmamma  that 
Heidi,  too,  began  to  talk  about  the  "grandmamma"; 
and  Fraulein  Rottenmeier  looked  at  her  disapprovingly, 
but  the  child  did  not  think  this  anything  strange,  as 
she  felt  perpetually  under  her  disapproval.  When  she 
started  later  to  go  to  her  room,  Fraulein  Rottenmeier 
called  her  first  into  hers,  and  explained  then  and  there 
that  she  must  never  use  the  name  "grandmamma,"  but 
must  address  her  as  "gnadige  Frau."  ^ 

"  Do  you  understand  this  ?  "  asked  the  lady  as  Heidi 
looked  at  her  somewhat  doubtfully ;  but  she  gave  her 
such  a  forbidding  look  in  return  that  Heidi  asked  for 
no  more  explanation,  although  she  did  not  understand 
the  title. 

1  Gracious  lady. 


^ 


CHAPTER   X 

A   GRANDMAMMA 

On  the  following  evening  there  were  great  expecta- 
tions and  lively  preparations  in  the  Sesemann  house, 
and  it  was  plain  to  be  seen  that  the  expected  lady  was 
of  great  importance  there,  and  that  every  one  felt  deep 
respect  for  her.  Tinette  had  put  a  brand-new  white  cap 
on  her  head,  and  Sebastian  had  collected  a  great  num- 
ber of  footstools,  so  that  the  lady  might  find  one  under 
her  feet  wherever  she  might  sit  down.  Fraulein  Rot- 
tenmeier,  very  erect,  went  through  the  rooms  inspect- 
ing everything,  as  if  to  signify  that  even  though  a 
second  ruling  power  was  near  at  hand,  her  own,  for 
all  that,  had  not  come  to  an  end. 

The  cai'riage  rolled  up  to  the  door,  and  Sebastian 
and  Tinette  rushed  down  the  stairs  ;  Fraulein  Rotten- 
meier  in  a  dignified  way  followed  slowly  after,  for  she 
knew  that  she  had  to  appear  to  welcome  Frau  Sese- 
mann, Heidi  had  been  told  to -go  to  her  room  and  to 
wait  there  until  she  was  called,  for  the  grandmamma 
would  first  go  to  see  Klara  and  would  wish  to  see  her 
alone.  Heidi  sat  down  in  a  corner  and  repeated  what 
she  was  to  say  to  Frau  Sesemann.  She  did  not  have 
long  to  wait  before  Tinette  thrust  her  head  a  very  little 
way  in  at  the  door  arid  said^brus^quely,  as  usual :  — 

I3S 


136  HEIDI 

"  Go  into  the  library." 

Heidi  had  not  dared  to  ask  Fraulein  Rottenmeier  for 
an  explanation  about  the  manner  of  addressing  the 
grandmamma,  but  she  thought  the  lady  must  have 
made  a  mistake,  for  until  now  she  had  always  heard  a 
person  called  Frau  or  Herr,  with  the  name  following; 
so  she  settled  the  matter  thus  in  her  own  mind.  As 
she  opened  the  door  into  the  library,  the  grandmamma 
called  out  to  her  in  a  friendly  voice  :  — 

"  Ah,  here  is  the  child !  Come  here  to  me  and  let 
me  look  at  you." 

Heidi  went  to  her  and  in  her  clear  voice  said  dis- 
tinctly :  — 

"  How  do  you  do,  Frau  Gnadige  .''  " 

"  And  why  not !  "  said  the  grandmamma,  laughing. 
"  Is  that  what  you  say  at  home  t  Did  you  hear  that  in 
the  Alps  .?  "  - 

"  No ;  no  one  among  us  has  that  name,"  answered 
Heidi  earnestly. 

"  Neither  has  any  one  here,"  said  the  grandmamma, 
again  laughing,  and  patted  Heidi  affectionately  on  the 
cheek.  "It  's  no  matter!  In  the  nursery  I  am  grand- 
mamma, and  you  shall  call  me  so.  You  can  remember 
that,  can't  you  .-*  " 

"Yes,  I  can,"  said  Heidi  confidently;  "I  always 
called  you  so  before." 

"  Well,  you  understand  now  !  "  said  the  grandmamma, 
nodding  her  head  quite  merrily.  Then  she  took  a  good 
look  at  Heidi,  nodding  her  head  again  from  time  to 
time,  and  Heidi  looked  very  earnestly  into  her  eyes, 


A    GRA'NDMAMMA  137 

for  they  had  such  an  expression  of  kindness  that  they 
made  her  feel  quite  at  her  ease,  so  that  she  could  not 
look  away.  She  had  such  beautiful  white  hair,  and 
around  her  head  a  lovely  lace  frill,  and  two  broad 
strings  fluttered  from  her  cap,  and  moved  continually 
as  if  a  light  breeze  hovered  around  the  grandmamma ; 
and  this  seemed  to  Heidi  very  peculiar. 

"  And  what  '^b  your  name,  child .-' "  then  asked  the 
grandmamma. 

"  My  name  is  only  Heidi ;  but  if  any  one  wants  to 
call  me  Adelheid,  I  pay  attention."  Heidi  hesitated, 
for  she  felt  a  little  guilty  since  she  still  made  no  reply 
if  Fraulein  Rottenmeier  called  unexpectedly,  "Adel- 
heid ! "  for  it  did  not  really  seem  to  her  that  this  was 
her  name,  and  Fraulein  Rottenmeier  was  just  coming 
into  the  room. 

"Frau  Sesemann  will  doubtless  admit,"  broke  in 
Fraulein  Rottenmeier,  "  that  I  had  to  choose  a  name 
which  could  be  pronounced  without  so  much  difficulty, 
for  the  sake  of  the  servants." 

"  My  dear  Rottenmeier,"  replied  Frau  Sesemann,  "if 
r*  person  is  named  Heidi,  and  she  is  accustomed  to  the 
iiai  le,  I  call  her  so  and  let  it  remain  so  ! " 

Fraulein  Rottenmeier  was  ^oxy  much  troubled  be- 
cause the  old  lady  continually  addressed  her  by  her 
name  alone,  without  any  prefix ;  but  there  was  nothing 
to  be  done  about  it ;  the  grandmamma  always  had  her 
own  way,  and  there  was  no  help  for  it.  Besides,  her 
6ve  senses  were  keen  and  sound,  and  she  always  knew 
what  was  going  on  in  the  house. 


138  HEID  T 

On  the  day  after  her  arrival,  when  Klara  lay  down 
at  the  usual  time  after  dinner,  the  grandmamma  took  a 
seat  in  an  easy-chair  by  her  side,  and  closed  her  eyes 
for  a  few  moments ;  then  she  jumped  up,  for  she  was 
immediately  awake  again,  and  went  out  into  the  dining- 
room  ;  there  was  no  one  there.  "She  is  asleep,"  she 
said  to  herself ;  then  went  to  Fraulein  Rottenmeier's 
room  and  knocked  loudly  on  the  door.  After  some 
time  she  appeared,  and  started  back  somewhat  alarmed 
by  the  unexpected  visit. 

"  Where  does  the  child  stay  at  this  time,  and  what 
does  she  do }  I  should  like  to  know  about  it,"  said 
Frau  Sesemann, 

"  She  sits  in  her  room,  where  she  might  busy  her- 
self with  something  useful,  if  she  had  the  slightest 
inclination  to  do  anything ;  but  Frau  Sesemann  ought 
to  know  what  absurd  things  this  creature  often  plans, 
and  really  carries  into  effect  —  things  which  I  could 
hardly  speak  about  in  refined  society." 

"  I  should  do  the  same  if  I  had  to  sit  there  alone  as 
this  child  does,  I  assure  you,  and  you  would  see  how  you 
would  speak  of  my  nonsense  in  refined  society.  Now 
bring  the  child  out  and  fetch  her  to  my  room ;  I  want 
to  give  her  some  pretty  books  I  have  brought  with  me." 

"That  is  just  the  trouble  ;  it  is  indeed!"  exclaimed 
Fraulein  Rottenmeier,  wringing  her  hands.  "  What  can 
the  child  do  with  books  .-*  In  all  this  time  she  has  not 
even  learned  her  A-B-C's ;  it  is  really  impossible  to 
get  a  single  idea  into  this  creature's  head ;  the  Herr 
Kandidat  can  tell   you  about  that !     If  this  excellent 


A    GRANDMAMMA  139 

man  did  n't  possess  the  patience  of  an  angel  from 
heaven,  he  would  long  ago  have  given  up  trying  to 
teach  her." 

"  This  is  very  strange  ;  she  does  n't  look  like  a  child 
who  cannot  learn  the  alphabet,"  said  Frau  Sesemann. 
"  Now  bring  her  to  me ;  she  can  first  look  at  the  pic- 
tures in  the  books." 

Fraulein  Rottenmeier  was  desirous  of  making  further 
remarks,  but  Frau  Sesemann  had  already  turned  around 
and  was  hurrying  back  to  her  own  room.  She  was 
very  much  surprised  to  hear  of  Heidi's  stupidity,  and 
thought  she  would  make  an  investigation,  but  not  with 
the  Herr  Kandidat,  though  she  really  valued  him  on 
account  of  his  good  character;  she  always  spoke  to 
him  in  a  particularly  friendly  way,  whenever  she  met 
him,  but  then  hurried  away,  in  order  not  to  be  drawn 
into  conversation  with  him,  for  his  manner  of  express- 
ing himself  was  rather  annoying  to  her. 

Heidi  came  into  the  grandmamma's  room  and  opened 
her  eyes  wide  wl;ien  she  saw  the  gay  pictures  in  the 
large  books  which  the  lady  had  brought  with  her.  Sud- 
denly Heidi  screamed  aloud  when  the  grandmamma 
turned  a  new  leaf ;  she  looked  at  the  figures  with  gleam- 
ing eyes,  then  all  at  once  bright  tears  rushed  to  them, 
and  she  began  to  sob  as  if  her  heart  would  break.  The 
grandmamma  examined  the  picture.  It  was  a  lovely 
green  pasture,  where  all  sorts  of  animals  were  feeding 
and  nibbling  the  green  shrubs.  In  the  middle  stood 
the  shepherd,  leaning  on  a  long  staff  and  gazing  at  the 
happy  creatures.     It  seemed  as  if  there  was  a  golden 


140  HEIDI 

light  over  it  all,  for  the  sun  was  just  going  down  beyond 
the  horizon. 

The  grandmamma  took  Heidi  by  the  hand. 

"Come,  come,  child,"  she  said  in  a  friendly  way, 
"  don't  cry,  don't  cry.  The  picture  made  you  remem- 
ber something ;  but  see,  there  is  a  lovely  story  about 
it,  which  I  will  tell  you  this  evening,  and  there  are  a 
great  many  more  beautiful  stories  in  the  book,  which 
can  be  read  and  repeated.  Come,  we  must  have  a  little 
talk  together.  Dry  your  tears,  and  now  stand  right 
.here  in  front  of  me,  so  that  I  can  look  straight  at  you  ; 
there,  that 's  right  ;  now  we  are  happy  again." 

But  it  was  still  some  time  before  Heidi  could  stop 
sobbing.  The  grandmamma  gave  her  a  good  while  to 
recover,  merely  saying  encouragingly  now  and  then  :  — 

•'  There,  that 's  good ;  now  we  are  happy  again  to- 
gether." 

When  she  finally  saw  that  the  child  was  quieted  she 
said:  — 

"  Now  you  must  tell  me  something,  my  child.  How 
do  you  get  along  in  the  study  hours  with  the  Herr  Kan- 
didat  .-*  Are  you  studying  well,  and  have  you  learned 
something .-' " 

"Oh,  no!"  answered  Heidi,  sighing;  "but  I  knew 
that  it  could  n't  be  learned." 

"  What  could  not  be  learned,  Heidi .''  what  do  you 
mean  ? " 

"  People  can't  learn  to  read;  it  is  too  hard." 

''  What  an  idea !  And  where  did  you  hear  this 
news.-* " 


A    GRANDMAMMA  141 

"  Peter  told  me  so,  and  he  knows  about  it.  He  has 
to  keep  trying,  but  he  can  never  learn ;  it  is  too 
hard." 

"  Well,  Peter  is  a  strange  fellow !  But,  see  here, 
Heidi,  you  must  not  always  take  for  granted  what  Peter 
tells  you ;  you  must  try  for  yourself.  Surely  you  have 
not  listened  with  all  your  mind  to  the  Herr  Kandidat, 
and  looked  at  the  letters." 

"  It 's  of  no  use,"  asserted  Heidi  with  a  tone  of 
entire  submission  to  the  inevitable. 

"Heidi,"  said  the  grandmamma,  "  now  I  am  going 
to  tell  you  something  :  you  have  not  learned  to  read 
yet  because  you  believed  your  Peter ;  but  now  you 
must  believe  me,  and  I  tell  you,  really  and  truly,  that 
you  can  learn  to  read  in  a  short  time,  like  a  great  many 
children,  who  are  like  you  and  not  like  Peter.  And 
now  you  must  know  what  will  happen  when  you  can 
read.  You  have  seen  the  shepherd  in  the  beautiful 
green  pasture.  As  soon  as  you  can  read  you  shall 
have  the  book  for  your  own,  so  that  you  can  learn  his 
whole  story,  just  as  if  some  one  told  it  to  you ;  all 
that  he  is  doing  with  his  sheep  and  goats,  and  all  the 
remarkable  things  that  happened  to  him.  You  would 
like  to  know  this,  would  n't  you,  Heidi }  " 

Heidi  had  listened  with  the  eagerest  attention,  and 
now  she  said,  with  beaming  eyes,  and  drawing  a  deep 
breath:  — 

"  Oh,  if  I  could  only  read  now !  " 

"  It  will  come,  and  it  won't  take  long ;  that  I  can  see 
already,  Heidi.     And  now  we  must  look  after  Klara : 


142  HEIDI 

come,  we  will  bring  the  lovely  books  with  us."  And 
the  grandmamma  took  Heidi  by  the  hand  and  went 
with  her  into  the  library. 

Since  the  day  when  Heidi  had  wanted  to  go  home, 
and  Fraulein  Rottenmeier  had  scolded  her  on  the  steps 
and  told  her  how  naughty  and  ungrateful  she  had  shown 
herself  by  wishing  to  run  away,  and  that  it  would  be  a 
good  thing  if  Herr  Sesemann  never  knew  about  it,  a 
change  had  taken  place  in  the  child.  She  had  the  idea 
that  she  could  not  go  home  if  she  wished,  as  her  aunt 
had  told  her,  but  that  she  must  stay  in  Frankfurt  for  a 
long,  long  time,  perhaps  forever.  She  had  also  under- 
stood that  Herr  Sesemann,  when  he  came  home,  would 
think  her  very  ungrateful,  and  she  imagined  that  Klara 
and  her  grandmamma  would  think  so  too.  So  Heidi 
dared  tell  no  one  that  she  wanted  to  go  home,  for  she 
did  not  wish  to  cause  the  grandmamma  to  be  cross, 
like  Fraulein  Rottenmeier.  But  in  her  heart  the  bur- 
den grew  heavier  and  heavier ;  she  could  no  longer  eat ; 
every  day  she  grew  a  little  paler.  At  night  she  often 
lay  awake  for  a  long,  long  time ;  for  as  soon  as  she  was 
alone,  and  all  was  still  around  her,  everything  came  so 
lifelike  before  her  eyes  —  the  Aim  and  the  sunshine 
on  it  and  the  flowers  !  And  when  finally  she  fell  asleep, 
she  would  see  in  her  dreams  the  red  pointed  cliffs  of 
Falkniss,  and  the  fiery  snow  field  of  Casaplana,  and  in 
the  morning  she  would  awake  and,  full  of  joy,  be  ready 
to  run  out  of  the  hut ;  suddenly  she  was  in  her  big 
bed  in  Frankfurt,  so  far,  far  away,  and  could  not  go 
home !     Then  Heidi  would  bury  her  head  in  her  pillow 


A    GRANDMAMMA  143 

and  weep  very  soitly  so  that  no  one  might  hear  her. 
Heidi's  unhappiness  did  not  escape  the  grandmamma's 
notice.  She  let  some  days  pass  by  to  see  if  there  would 
be  any  change  in  her  —  if  her  down-heartedness  would 
pass  away.  But  as  Heidi  remained  the  same,  and  the 
grandmamma  could  often  see  early  in  the  morning  that 
she  had  been  crying,  she  called  the  child  one  day  into 
her  room  and  said  with  the  greatest  kindness  :  — 

"  Now  tell  me,  Heidi,  what  is  the  matter }  Is  some- 
thing grieving  you  .? " 

But  Heidi  would  not  seem  ungrateful  to  the  kind 
grandmamma,  for  fear  she  might  no  longer  be  so 
friendly  toward  her ;   so  she  said  sadly :  — 

"  I  cannot  tell  you." 

"No.?  Can  you  not  tell  Klara?"  asked  the  grand- 
mamma. 

"  Oh,  no,  I  can't  tell  anybody  !  "  said  Heidi  decidedly, 
and  looking  so  unhappy  that  the  grandmamma  pitied 
her. 

**  Come,  my  child,"  she  said,  "  I  want  to  tell  you 
something.  When  we  have  a  sorrow  we  cannot  speak 
to  anybody  about,  then  we  tell  the  dear  God  in  heaven, 
and  ask  him  to  help  us,  for  he  can  take  away  every  sor- 
row that  troubles  us.  You  understand  that,  don't  you .? 
You  pray  every  night  to  the  dear  God  in  heaven,  and 
thank  him  for  everything  good,  and  ask  him  to  keep 
you  from  all  harm,  don't  you } " 

"  Oh,  no,  I  never  do  that !  "  answered  the  child. 

"  Have  you  never  prayed,  then,  Heidi .''  Do  you  not 
know  what  it  is  .?  " 


144  HEIDI 

"  I  used  to  pray  with  the  first  grandmother,  but  it  is 
so  long  ago  that  I  have  forgotten  about  it." 

"  You  see,  Heidi,  the  reason  you  are  so  sad  is  be- 
cause you  know  no  one  that  can  help  you.  Just  think 
what  a  good  thing  it  is,  when  something  troubles  and 
distresses  you  in  your  heart,  that  you  can  go  any  moment 
to  the  dear  Lord  and  tell  him  everything,  and  ask  him 
to  help  you,  when  no  one  else  can  help  you !  And  he 
can  always  help  you  and  make  you  happy  again." 

A  glad  light  came  into  Heidi's  eyes  :  — 

"  Can  I  tell  him  everything,  everything  }  " 

"  Everything,  Heidi,  everything." 

The  child  drew  her  hand  out  of  the  grandmamma's 
and  said  quickly  :  — 

"Can  I  go.?" 

"Certainly!  certainly!"  was  the  reply;  and  Heidi 
ran  away  to  her  own  room  and  sat  down  on  a  footstool, 
folded  her  hands  and  told  the  dear  Lord  everything 
that  was  in  her  heart,  everything  that  made  her  sad, 
and  asked  him,  urgently  and  sincerely,  to  help  her  and 
let  her  go  home  to  her  grandfather. 

A  little  more  than  a  week  had  passed  since  this  day, 
when  the  Herr  Kandidat  asked  to  see  Frau  Sesemann, 
as  he  wished  to  talk  with  her  about  an  important  mat- 
ter. He  was  called  into  her  room.  Frau  Sesemann 
politely  offered  him  her  hand  :  — 

"  My  dear  Herr  Kandidat,  I  am  glad  to  see  you  !  Sit 
down  here  by  me  "  ;  she  pushed  a  chair  toward  him. 
"  There,  now  tell  me  what  brings  you  here ;  nothing 
unpleasant,  no  complaint }  " 


A    GRANDMAMMA  145 

"On  the  contrary,  gracious  madam,"  began  the  Herr 
Kandidat,  "something  has  happened  which  I  no  longer 
expected,  and  any  one  who  could  have  glanced  at  what 
went  before,  after  all  suppositions,  would  have  decided 
that  what  has  actually  happened  and  taken  place  in  the 
most  wonderful  way  was  utterly  impossible,  as  if  in 
opposition  to  all  consistent  to  the"  — 

"  Has  the  child  Heidi  possibly  learned  to  read,  Herr 
Kandidat  ?  "  broke  in  Frau  Sesemann. 

The  Herr  Kandidat,  taken  aback,  looked  at  the  lady 
in  speechless  amazement. 

"  It  is  really  quite  wonderful,"  he  said  at  last,  "  not 
only  that  the  little  girl,  after  all  my  thorough  explana- 
tion and  unusual  pains,  did  not  learn  her  A-B-C's,  but 
also,  and  especially,  that  in  the  shortest  time  after  I  had 
decided  to  give  up  the  unattainable,  and  without  further 
explanation,  to  bring  the  bare  letters,  so  to  speak,  before 
the  little  girl's  eyes,  she  took  hold  of  the  reading  over- 
night as  it  were,  and  then  at  once  read  the  words  with 
such  correctness  as  I  have  seldom  found  with  beginners. 
Almost  equally  wonderful  to  me  is  the  gracious  lady's 
perception  in  straightway  suspecting  that  this  improb- 
able fact  was  possible." 

"A  great  many  wonderful^  things  happen  in  the 
course  of  one's  life,"  affirmed  Frau  Sesemann,  laughing 
with  satisfaction.  "Two  things  might  happen  fortu- 
nately ;  for  instance,  new  zeal  in  learning  and  a  new 
method  in  teaching ;  and  neither  can  do  any  harm,  Herr 
Kandidat.  Let  us  rejoice  that  the  child  has  done  so 
well,  and  let  us  hope  for  good  progress." 


146  HEIDI 

Whereupon  she  accompanied  the  taacher  out  of  the 
room  and  went  quickly  to  the  library,  to  assure  herself 
that  the  delightful  news  was  true.  It  was !  There  sat 
Heidi,  reading  a  story  to  Klara,  and  with  growing  eager- 
ness pushing  into  the  new  world  opened  to  her ;  men 
and  things  suddenly  became  alive  and  stepped  out  of 
the  black  letters  and  took  part  in  affecting  stories. 

That  same  evening,  as  they  were  sitting  down  to  the 
table,  Heidi  found  the  large  book  with  the  beautiful 
pictures  lying  on  her  plate,  and  when  she  looked 
inquiringly  at  the  grandmamma,  Frau  Sesemann  said, 
nodding  in  a  friendly  way  :  — 

**  Yes,  yes,  now  it  belongs  to  you." 

"  For  always  .-*  Even  when  I  go  home  }  "  asked  Heidi, 
blushing  with  delight. 

"  Certainly,  for  always ! "  said  the  grandmamma 
assuringly ;  "  to-morrow  we  will  begin  to  read  it." 

"  But  you  are  not  going  home,  not  for  a  good  many 
years,  Heidi,"  broke  in  Klara;  "if  grandmamma  goes 
away,  you  mubt  surely  stay  with  me." 

Before  she  went  to  sleep  Heidi  had  to  look  at  her 
beautiful  book  in  her  own  room,  and  from  that  day 
forth  she  liked  nothing  better  than  to  sit  with  it,  read- 
ing over  and  over  again  the  stories  belonging  to  the 
lovely  pictures.  In  the  evening  the  grandmamma 
would  say  :  "  Now  Heidi  will  read  to  us  "  ;  and  this  de- 
lighted the  child,  for  now  she  could  read  easily ;  and  as 
she  read  the  stories  aloud  they  became  much  more  beau- 
tiful, and  she  understood  them  better,  and  the  grand- 
mamma explained  so  much  to  her,  and  always  told  her 


A    GRANDMAMMA 


147 


still  more  about  them.  Heidi  liked  to  look  again  and 
again  at  the  green  pasture  and  the  shepherd  in  the 
midst  of  his  flock,  standing  so  contentedly,  leaning  on 
his  long  staff,  for  there  he  was  still  with  his  father's 
flock,  following  the  merry  lambs  and  goats,  for  this  was 
his  delight. 

Then  came  the  picture  where  he  had  run  away  from 
his  father's  house,  and  was  in  a  strange  land,  obliged  to 
tend  the  swine,  and  had  grown  very  thin  because  he 


.r>^' 


had  nothing  but  husks  to  eat.  The  sun  no  longer 
shone  so  golden  in  this  picture,  and  the  land  looked 
gray  and  gloomy.  But  there  was  still  another  picture 
to  the  story,  in  which  the  old  father,  with  outstretched 
arms,  is  coming  out  of  the  house  and  running  to  wel- 


148  HEIDI 

come  the  penitent  son,  who,  in  a  ragged  jacket,  is 
returning  home  faint-hearted  and  wasted  away.  This 
was  Heidi's  favorite  story,  and  she  read  it  over  and  over 
again,  both  aloud  and  to  herself;  and  she  was  never 
tired  of  hearing  the  explanation  which  the  grandmamma 
gave.  There  were  a  great  many  other  beautiful  stories 
in  the  book,  and  with  reading  these  and  looking  at  the 
pictures  the  days  passed  away  quickly,  and  the  time 
soon  drew  near  when  the  grandmamma  had  decided  to 
go  home. 


CHAPTER   XI 

HEIDI  IMPROVES  IN  SOME  RESPECTS,  AND  IN  OTHERS 

GROWS    WORSE 

Every  afternoon  when  Klara  was  lying  down,  and 
Fraulein  Rottenmeier,  apparently  in  need  of  rest,  mys- 
teriously disappeared,  the  grandmamma  sat  down  by 
Klara  for  a  while,  but  after  five  minutes  she  was  on  her 
feet  again,  and  always  called  Heidi  to  her  room  to 
talk  with  her,  keep  her  busy,  and  amuse  her  in  various 
ways.  The  grandmamma  had  pretty  little  dolls  and 
pieces  of  the  most  marvelous  bright-colored  materials, 
which  she  showed  Heidi  how  to  make  into  dresses  and 
aprons  and  cloaks  for  them ;  so  the  little  girl  uncon- 
sciously learned  to  sew.  Now  that  -Heidi  could  read, 
she  always  read  some  of  her  stories  aloud  to  the  grand- 
mamma; and  this -gave  her  the  greatest  pleasure,  for 
the  more  she  read  them  the  dearer  they  became  to  her. 
Heidi  entered  so  vividly  into  the  characters  and  their 
experiences  that  she  felt  closely  related  to  them  and 
took  more  and  more  pleasure  in  their  company.  But 
she  never  looked  quite  happy,  and  there  was  no  longer 
any  merriment  in  her  eyes. 

It  was  the  last  week  that  the  grandmamma  was  to 
spend  in  Frankfurt.  She  had  called  for  Heidi  to  come 
into  her  room  ;  Klara  was  taking  her  nap.    When  Heidi 

149 


150  HEIDI 

entered  with  her  big  book  under  her  arm,  the  grand- 
mamma motioned  to  her  to  come  close  to  her,  laid  the 
book  aside,  and  said  :  — 

"  Now  come,  my  child,  and  tell  me  why  you  are  not 
happy.     Have  you  still  the  same  trouble  in  your  heart  ?  " 

"Yes,"  said  Heidi,  nodding. 

*'  Have  you  told  the  dear  Lord  about  it } " 

"Yes." 

"  And  do  you  pray  every  day  that  all  may  be  well, 
and  that  he  will  make  you  happy .-'  " 

"Oh,  no,  I  don't  pray  any  more  now." 

"  What  do  you  tell  me,  Heidi }  what  do  I  hear }  Why 
don't  you  pray  any  longer  }  " 

"  It 's  of  no  use  ;  the  dear  Lord  did  not  listen  ;  and 
I  really  believe,"  continued  Heidi,  somewhat  excited, 
"when  so  many,  many  people  in  Frankfurt  are  pray- 
ing together  at  night,  the  dear  Lord  cannot  pay  atten- 
tion to  them  all,  and  so  he  has  certainly  not  heard  me." 

"  Why,  how  do  you  kno\^  that  this  is  so,  Heidi  .-* " 

"  I  prayed  the  same  prayer  every  day  for  many  long 
weeks,  and  the  dear  Lord  never  answered  me." 

"That  is  not  so,  Heidi !  You  must  n't  have  such  an 
idea !  You  see,  the  dear  Lord  is  a  good  Father  to  us 
all !  He  always  knows  what  is  good  for  us,  if  we  do 
not  know  it.  But  if  we  want  something  from  him 
that  is  not  good  for  us,  he  does  not  give  it  to  us,  but 
something  much  better,  if  we  continue  to  pray  to  him 
sincerely,  and  do  not  run  away  and  lose  all  confidence 
in  him.  You  see,  what  you  wished  to  ask  of  him  was 
not  good  for  you  just  now;  the  dear  Lord  heard  you; 


HEIDI  IMPROVES  IN  SOME   RESPECTS  151 

he  can  hear  and  see  every  one  at  the  same  time,  be- 
cause he  is  God,  and  not  a  human  being  like  you  and 
me,  and  because  he  knew  what  was  good  for  you,  he 
thought  to  himself  :  — 

" '  Yes,  Heidi  shall  have  what  she  asks  for,  but  not 
until  it  is  good  for  her,  and  when  she  will  be  quite  happy 
about  it.  For  if  I  should  do  now  what  she  wants,  and 
she  finds  afterwards  that  it  would  have  been  better  if 
I  had  not  done  what  she  wished,  then  she  would  cry 
and  say :  "  If  only  the  dear  Lord  had  not  given  me 
what  I  asked  for !  It  is  not  so  good  as  I  thought  it 
would  be ! "  '  And  while  the  dear  Lord  was  looking 
down  to  see  whether  you  really  trusted  him  and  came 
to  him  every  day  and  prayed  when  you  needed  any- 
thing, you  have  run  away,  no  longer  prayed,  and  quite 
forgotten  him. 

"  But,  you  see,  when  one  does  so,  and  the  dear  Lord 
no  longer  hears  his  voice  in  prayer,  he  forgets  him,  too, 
and  lets  him  go  whither  he  will.  But  when  one  is  in 
trouble  and  complains,  '  There  is  no  one  to  help  me  ! ' 
we  feel  no  pity  for  him,  but  say:  'You  yourself  ran 
away  from  the  dear  Lord,  who  could  have  helped  you  ! ' 
Do  you  want  it  to  be  so,  Heidi,  or  will  you  go  right 
away  to  the  dear  Lord  and  ask  ^his  forgiveness  for  hav- 
ing turned  away  from  him,  and  then  pray  every  day, 
and  trust  him  so  that  everything  will  be  made  right 
for  you,  and  you  may  have  a  happy  heart  again }  " 

Heidi  had  listened  very  attentively ;  every  word  of 
the  grandmamma  had  gone  to  her  heart,  for  the  child 
had  perfect  confidence  in  her. 


152  HEIDI 

"  I  will  go  now,  right  away,  and  ask  God  to  forgive 
me,  and  I  will  never  forget  him  again,"  said  Heidi 
penitently. 

"That  is  right,  my  child;  he  will  help  you  at  the 
right  time,  only  be  trustful !  "  said  the  grandmamma 
encouragingly  ;  and  Heidi  ran  away  to  her  room  at  once 
and  prayed  earnestly  and  penitently  to  the  dear  Lord, 
and  asked  him  not  to  forget  her,  but  to  look  down  upon 
her  again. 

The  day  for  the  grandmamma's  departure  had  come, 
and  it  was  a  sad  day  for  Klara  and  Heidi;  but  the 
grandmamma  managed  it  so  that  they  were  not  aware 
that  it  was  a  sad  day,  but  rather  a  festival,  until  she 
went  away  in  the  carriage.  Then  the  house  seemed  as 
empty  and  still  as  if  everything  had  come  to  an  end, 
and  throughout  the  rest  of  the  day  Klara  and  Heidi 
sat  as  if  lost,  and  did  not  know  what  would  happen 
next. 

The  next  day  when  the  lessons  were  over,  and  it  was 
time  for  the  children  to  sit  together  as  usual,  Heidi 
came  in  with  her  book  under  her  arm  and  said :  — 

"  I  am  always,  always  going  to  read  aloud  to  you ; 
would  you  like  to  have  me,  Klara  ?  " 

Klara  agreed  to  this  proposal,  and  Heidi  made  haste 
to  begin  her  task.  But  it  was  not  long  before  it  all 
came  to  an  end,  for  Heidi  had  scarcely  begun  to  read  a 
story,  which  told  about  a  dying  grandmother,  when  she 
suddenly  screamed  aloud  :  — 

"  Oh,  now  the  grandmother  is  dead  ! "  She  burst 
into  pitiful  weeping,  for  everything  that   Heidi  read 


HEIDI  IMPROVES  IJST  SOME  RESPECTS  153 

was  to  her  actually  taking  place,  and  she  believed 
nothing  else  than  that  the  grandmother  on  the  Aim 
was  dead ;  so  she  cried  louder  and  louder :  — 

"  Now  the  grandmother  is  dead  and  I  can  never  go 
to  her,  and  she  has  never  had  a  single  roll !  " 

Klara  tried  to  explain  to  Heidi  that  it  was  not  the 
grandmother  on  the  Aim,  but  an  entirely  different  one, 
whom  the  story  was  telling  about ;  but  even  when  this 
mistake  was  finally  made  clear  to  the  excited  Heidi,  she 
could  not  calm  herself,  and  went  on  crying  inconsol- 
ably,  for  the  thought  had  been  awakened  in  her  mind 
that  the  grandmother  really  might  die,  and  her  grand- 
father too,  while  she  was  so  far  away,  and  then  if  she 
should  go  home  after  a  long  time,  it  would  be  so  still 
and  lifeless  on  the  Aim,  and  she  would  be  all  alone, 
and  could  never  again  see  those  who  were  dear  to  her. 

In  the  mean  time  Fraulein  Rottenmeier  had  come 
into  the  room  and  heard  Klara's  attempt  to  explain 
Heidi's  mistake.  But  when  the  child  still  could  not 
stop  sobbing,  she  went  with  evident  signs  of  impatience 
toward  the  children  and  said  in  a  decided  voice  :  — 

"Adelheid,  we  have  had  enough  of  your  useless 
screaming !  I  want  to  tell  you  something  ;  if  you  ever 
again,  while  you  are  reading  your  stories,  give  vent  to 
such  an  outbreak,  I  will  take  the  book  away  from  you 
and  not  return  it." 

This  made  an  impression.  Heidi  turned  pale  with 
fright.  The  book  was  her  dearest  treasure.  She  has- 
tily dried  her  tears  and  swallowed  and  choked  down 
her  sobs  with  all  her  might,  so  that  no  further  sound 


^'H 


154  HEIDI 

was  heard  from  her.  This  means  took  effect.  Heidi 
did  not  cry  again,  no  matter  what  she  read ;  but  many 
a  time  she  had  to  make  such  an  effort  to  control  her- 
self and  not  scream  out,  that  Klara  often  said,  quite 
surprised  :  — 

"  Heidi,  you  are  making  the  most  frightful  faces  I 
ever  saw !  " 

But  the  faces  made  no  sound  and  did  not  offend 
Dame  Rottenmeier,  and  when  Heidi  had  overcome 
her  attack  of  desperate  sadness  everything  went  on  in 
the  old  way  and  passed  along  quietly.  But  Heidi  lost 
her  appetite  and  was  so  thin  and  pale  that  Sebastian 
could  hardly  bear  to  look  on  and  see  how  the  child  let 
the  nicest  dishes  pass  by  untouched.  He  often  whis- 
pered to  her  encouragingly  when  he  passed  her  some- 
thing :  — 

"  Take  some  of  it,  Mamsell,  it  is  fine.  Not  such  a 
little !  A  good  spoonful,  and  another ! "  But  his 
fatherly  advice  did  no  good.  Heidi  ate  almost  nothing 
at  all,  and  at  night  when  she  lay  down  on  her  pillow 
everything  at  home  instantly  came  before  her  eyes, 
and  then,  out  of  homesickness,  she  wept  in  her  pillow 
very  softly,  so  that  no  one  might  hear  her. 

A  long  time  passed  in  this  way.  Heidi  scarcely 
knew  whether  it  was  summer  or  winter,  for  the  walls 
and  windows,  which  were  the  only  things  to  be  seen 
from  the  Sesemann  house,  always  looked  the  same, 
and  she  went  out  only  when  Klara  was  particularly 
well,  and  could  be  taken  for  a  drive  in  the  carriage; 
and  this  was  always  very  short,  for  Klara  could  not 


.■Ml 


HEIDI  IMPROVES  IN  SOME   RESPECTS  155 

bear  to  go  far.  So  they  seldom  went  beyond .  walls 
and  pavements,  but  usually  turned  round  before  they 
reached  the  suburbs ;  so  that  all  they  saw  was  beauti- 
ful wide  streets,  where  plenty  of  houses  and  people 
were  to  be  seen,  but  no  grass  and  flowers,  no  fir  trees, 
and  no  mountains ;  and  Heidi's  longing  for  a  glimpse 
of  the  beautiful  things  she  had  been  accustomed  to 
increased  every  day.  Now  the  mere  name  of  one  of 
these  suggestive  words  was  enough  to 
cause  an  outbreak  of  pain,  and  Heidi 
had  to  struggle  against  it  with  all  her 
might. 

Thus  passed  the  autumn  and  win-  {/^^^^^^fe>^^ 
ter ;  and  the  sun  had  already  become 
so  dazzling  on  the  white  walls  of  the 
houses  opposite  that  Heidi  surmised 
the  time  was  drawing  near  for  Peter 
to  drive  the  goats  up  on  the  Aim 
again,  and  the  golden  rock-roses  would  be  glistening 
in  the  sunshine,  and  every  evening  all  the  moun- 
tains round  would  be  on  fire.  Heidi  would  sit  down  in 
a  corner  of  her  lonely  room  and  put  both  hands  over 
her  eyes,  so  that  she  might  not  see  the  sunlight  on  the 
walls  opposite;  and  thus  she  would  sit  without  stir- 
ring, silently  fighting  against  her  burning  homesick- 
ness, until  Klara  called  for  her  again. 


CHAPTER    XII 

THE    SESEMANN    HOUSE   IS    HAUNTED 

P'oR  several  days  Fraulein  Rottenmeier  had  been 
going  about  the  house,  for  the  most  part,  in  silence 
and  wrapt  in  thought.  If  at  dusk  she  went  from  one 
room  to  another,  or  through  the  long  corridor,  she 
often  looked  around  her  and  into  the  corners,  giving  a 
quick  glance  behind  now  and  then,  as  if  she  thought 
some  one  might  be  coming  softly  after  her  and,  un- 
noticed, pull  her  dress.  She  went  alone  into  the  living- 
rooms  only.  If  she  had  something  to  do  on  the  upper 
floor  where  the  handsomely  furnished  guest-rooms  were 
situated,  or  downstairs  in  the  great  mysterious  hall,  in 
which  every  step  gave  a  resounding  echo,  and  the  old 
senators,  with  their  big  white  collars,  looked  down  from 
the  walls  so  sternly  and  steadily  with  their  big  eyes, 
she  would  pretend  there  was  something  to  carry  up  or 
down,  and  she  would  summon  Tinette  and  tell  her  she 
must  come  with  her.  Tinette  did  exactly  the  same ;  if 
she  had  any  work  to  do  upstairs  or  down,  she  would 
call  Sebastian  and  tell  him  he  was  to  go  with  her,  for 
she  might  have  something  to  carry  which  she  could  not 
manage  alone.  Strange  to  say,  Sebastian  did  precisely 
the  same ;  if  he  was  sent  to  the  remote  part  of  the 
house,  be  called  up  Johann  and  directed  him  to  accom- 

^56 


THE  SESEMANN  HOUSE   IS  HAUNTED  157 

pany  him,  for  fear  he  could  not  bring  what  was  needed. 
Each  one  followed  the  other  quite  willingly,  although 
there  was  really  nothing  to  be  carried,  and  each  might 
have  gone  alone;  but  it  seemed  as  if  the  companion 
always  thought  he  might  soon  need  the  other  for  the 
same  service.  While  this  was  going  on  upstairs,  the 
cook,  who  had  been  in  the  house  for  many  years,  stood 
below,  deep  in  thought  among  her  pots,  and  shook  her 
head  and  sighed  :  — 

"  That  I  should  live  to  see  this  !  " 

For  some  time  there  had  been  something  strange 
and  uncanny  going  on  in  the  Sesemann  house.  Every 
morning  when  the  servants  came  down  the  house  door 
stood  wide  open,  but  no  one  was  to  be  seen  anywhere 
about  who  could  give  any  account  of  the  matter.  The 
first  few  times  when  this  happened  all  the  chambers 
and  rooms  of  the  house  were  anxiously  searched  to  see 
what  had  been  stolen,  for  they  thought  a  thief  had 
broken  into  the  house  in  the  night  and  had  escaped 
with  his  booty  ;  but  such  was  not  the  case ;  not  a  single 
thing  in  the  whole  house  was  missing. 

At  night  the  door  was  not  only  double  locked,  but 
also  a  wooden  bar  was  put  across ;  it  made  no  differ- 
ence, in  the  morning  the  door  stood  wide  open ;  and  no 
matter  how  early  the  servants  in  their  excitement  came 
down,  there  stood  the  door  open  ;  yet  everything  round 
about  was  wrapt  in  deep  sleep,  and  the  doors  and  win- 
dows in  all  the  other  houses  were  still  firmly  fastened. 

At  last  Johann  and  Sebastian  took  courage,  and  at 
Dame  Rottenmeier's  urgent  request,  prepared  to  spend 


158  HEIDI 

the  night  below  in  the  room  adjoining  the  great  hall,  to 
see  what  would  happen. 

Fraulein  Rottenmeier  got  out  some  of  Herr  Sese- 
mann's  weapons  and  gave  them  to   Sebastian. 

The  two  men  sat  down  on  the  appointed  evening,  and 
after  being  at  first  very  talkative  they  became  rather 
sleepy  ;  whereupon  they  both  leaned  back  in  their  chairs 
and  were  silent.  When  the  old  tower  clock  struck 
twelve,  Sebastian  grew  bold  and  called  to  his  compan- 
ion ;  but  he  was  not  easy  to  waken  ;  as  often  as  Sebas- 
tian called  to  him  he  would  turn  his  head  from  one  side 
of  the  chair  back  to  the  other  and  go  to  sleep  again. 
Sebastian  now  listened  eagerly,  for  he  was  wide  awake 
again.  It  was  as  still  as  a  mouse  everywhere ;  even  in 
the  street  there  was  no  sound  to  be  heard.  Sebastian 
did  not  go  to  sleep  again,  for  it  seemed  to  him  uncanny 
in  the  deep  stillness,  and  he  called  Johann  in  a  subdued 
voice  and  shook  him  a  little  from  time  to  time.  Finally, 
when  it  had  struck  one  o'clock,  Johann  woke  up  and 
realized  why  he  was  sitting  in  a  chair  and  not  lying  in 
his  bed.  Suddenly  he  began  to  be  very  brave  and 
called  out :  — 

"Now,  Sebastian,  we  must  go  out  and  see  how 
things  are  ;  you  need  n't  be  afraid.     Come  after  me." 

Johann  opened  wide  the  room  door,  which  had  been 
left  ajar,  and  stepped  outside.  At  the  same  moment 
a  sharp  gust  of  air  blew  in  from  the  open  house  door 
and  put  out  the  light  which  Johann  held  in  his  hand. 
He  rushed  back,  almost  threw  Sebastian,  who  was 
standing  behind  him,  backwards  into  the  room,  then 


THE  SESEMANN  HOUSE   IS  HAUNTED  159 

dragged  him  along,  closed  the  door,  and  in  feverish 
haste  turned  the  key  as  far  as  it  would  go.  Then  he 
pulled  out  his  match-box  and  made  a  light  again. 
Sebastian  did  not  know  just  what  had  happened,  for, 
standing  behind  the  broad-shouldered  Johann,  he  had 
not  so  plainly  felt  the  draft  of  air.  But  when  they 
could  see  each  other  by  the  light,  Sebastian  cried  out 
from  fright,  for  Johann  was  deadly  pale  and  trembled 
like  an  aspen  leaf. 

"What  is  the  matter.?  What  was  outside  there.''" 
asked  Sebastian   anxiously. 

"The  door  was  as  wide  open  as  it  could  be,"  gasped 
Johann,  "  and  there  was  a  white  form  on  the  steps ;  you 
see,  Sebastian,  it  came  up  the  steps,  disappeared,  and 
was  gone." 

Cold  shivers  ran  down  Sebastian's  back.  Then  they 
sat  down  very  close  together  and  did  not  stir  again 
until  it  was  morning  and  people  began  to  be  moving 
in  the  street.  Then  they  went  out  together,  closed  the 
open  door,  and  went  upstairs  to  tell  Fraulein  Rotten- 
meier  about  their  experience.  The  lady  was  quite  ready 
to  talk,  for  the  expectation  of  what  might  happen  had 
kept  her  from  sleeping.  As  soon  as  she  learned  what 
had  occurred  she  sat  down  and  wrote  such  a  letter  to 
Herr  Sesemann  as  he  had  never  received  before.  In 
it  she  said  that  her  fingers  were  paralyzed  with  fright, 
Herr  Sesemann  must  immediately  come  home,  for  the 
most  unheard-of  things  had  happened  there.  Then  she 
told  him  what  had  taken  place  ;  how  the  door  was  found 
wide  open  every  morning,  and  in  consequence  no  one 


160  HEIDI 

in  the  house  was  any  longer  sure  of  his  life,  and  that 
no  one  could  tell  what  horrible  results  might  follow 
this  mysterious  occurrence.  Herr  Sesemann  replied 
by  return  of  mail  that  it  was  impossible  for  him  to 
leave  his  business  so  suddenly  to  come  home.  The 
ghost  story  was  very  strange,  and  he  hoped  it  was  all 
past.  Meanwhile,  if  there  should  be  any  further 
trouble,  Fraulein  Rottenmeier  might  write  to  Frau 
Sesemann  and  ask  her  to  come  to  Frankfurt  to  their 
assistance;  his  mother  would  surely  dispel  the  ghosts 
in  a  very  short  space  of  time,  and  after  that  they  would 
never  again  venture  to  disturb  his  house. 

Fraulein  Rottenmeier  was  not  pleased  with  the  tone 
of  this  letter ;  the  matter  had  made  too  little  impres- 
sion on  him.  She  wrote  immediately  to  Frau  Sese- 
mann, but  she  did  not  get  any  more  satisfaction  from 
this  direction,  and  the  reply  contained  some  very  sar- 
castic remarks.  Frau  Sesemann  wrote  that  she  did  not 
think  it  worth  while  for  her  to  travel  from  Holstein  to 
Frankfurt  because  Rottenmeier  saw  ghosts.  Moreover, 
a  ghost  had  never  been  seen  in  the  Sesemann  house, 
and  if  there  was  one  wandering  around  there  now,  it 
could  be  nothing  but  a  living  being,  and  Rottenmeier 
ought  to  be  able  to  come  to  an  understanding  with  it ; 
if  not,  she  should  call  the  night  watchman  to  her  aid. 

But  Fraulein  Rottenmeier  was  determined  not  to 
spend  her  days  any  longer  in  terror,  and  she  knew  how 
to  help  herself.  Until  then  she  had  told  the  children 
nothing  about  the  appearance  of  a  ghost,  lest  they 
should  be  afraid  to  stay  alone  a  single  moment  day  or 


THE   SESEMANN  HOUSE    IS  HAUNTED.  161 

night,  and  that  might  have  very  uncomfortable  conse- 
quences for  her.  Now  she  went  straight  to  the  library, 
where  the  two  were  sitting  together,  and  in  a  sup- 
pressed voice  told  them  how  a  strange  being  appeared 
every  night.  Immediately  Klara  screamed  out  that  she 
would  not  stay  alone  another  moment,  that  her  papa 
must  come  home,  and  Fraulein  Rottenmeier  must  sleep 
in  her  room,  and  Heidi  ought  not  to  be  alone  either,  or 
the  ghost  might  come  to  her  and  do  her  some  harm. 
She  wanted  them  all  to  stay  in  the  same  room  and  to 
have  a  light  burning  all  night,  and  Tinette  must  sleep 
near,  and  Sebastian  and  Johann  must  come  down  and 
spend  the  night  in  the  hall,  in  order  to  scream  and 
frighten  away  the  ghost  if  it  should  come  up  on  the 
stairs. 

Klara  was  very  much  excited,  and  Fraulein  Rotten- 
meier had  the  greatest  difficulty  to  quiet  her.  She 
promised  to  write  to  her  papa  immediately,  and  to  put 
her  bed  in  Klara's  room,  and  never  to  leave  her  alone 
again.  They  could  not  all  sleep  in  the  same  room,  but 
if  Adelheid  was  afraid,  Tinette  must  put  up  a  couch  in 
her  room.  But  Heidi  was  more  afraid  of  Tinette  than 
of  ghosts,  for  she  had  never  even  heard  of  such  things, 
and  she  insisted  that  she  was  not  afraid  and  preferred 
to  remain  alone  in  her  room. 

.  Hereupon  Fraulein  Rottenmeier  flew  to  her  writing 
table  and  wrote  to  Herr  Sesemann  how  the  mysterious 
proceedings  which  were  repeated  every  night  in  his 
house  had  so  affected  his  daughter's  delicate  constitu- 
tion that  the  most  serious  consequences  were  to  be 


162  HEIDI 

anticipated.  Examples  were  known  of  sudden  epileptic 
seizures,  or  attacks  of  St.  Vitus's  dance,  in  similar  cases, 
and  his  daughter  was  liable  to  any  such  misfortune  if 
the  house  were  not  relieved  from  this  state  of  terror. 

This  had  some  effect.  Two  days  later  Herr  Sese- 
mann  was  standing  at  his  door  and  rang  so  violently  that 
every  one  in  the  house  came  hurrying  down,  and  each 
gazed  at  the  other,  for  they  believed  nothing  less  than 
that  the  ghost  was  most  impudently  playing  his  evil 
tricks  even  in  the  daytime.  Sebastian,  on  the  floor 
above,  cautiously  peered  out  through  a  half-opened 
shutter;  and  just  at  that  instant  there  was  another 
ring  at  the  bell,  and  this  time  so  imperatively  that  no 
doubt  was  left  in  any  one's  mind  that  it  was  a  human 
hand  behind  the  summons. 

Sebastian  had  recognized  the  hand,  dashed  through 
the  room,  flew  headfirst  downstairs,  but  landed  on  his 
feet  at  the  bottom  and  flung  the  front  door  open. 
Herr  Sesemann  did  not  stop  to  talk  with  him,  but  went 
immediately  up  to  his  daughter's  room.  Klara  received 
her  papa  with  a  cry  of  joy,  and  when  he  saw  her  look- 
ing so  cheerful  and  unaltered,  his  face,  which  had  looked 
very  stern,  softened,  and  his  expression  grew  more  and 
more  pleasant,  as  he  heard  from  his  daughter's  own 
lips  that  she  was  as  well  as  usual,  and  that  she  was 
perfectly  delighted  to  have  him  at  home  again,  and  that 
she  was  most  grateful  to  the  ghost  that  was  haunting 
the  house,  because  it  had  caused  her  papa  to  come 
home. 

"  And  what  further  pranks  has  the  ghost  been  up 


THE  SESEMANN  HOUSE   IS  HAUNTED.  163 

to,  Fraulein  Rottenmeier  ?  "  asked  Herr  Sesemann  with 
a  comical  expression  in  the  corners  of  his  mouth. 

"Indeed,  Herr  Sesemann,"  replied  that  lady  with 
solemnity,  "  it  is  no  laughing  matter.  I  have  no  doubt 
at  all  that  by  to-morrow  Herr  Sesemann  will  find  it 
serious  enough ;  for  what  is  going  on  in  this  house 
signifies  that  something  terrible  must  have  happened 
here  in  days  gone  by  and  have  been  kept  secret." 

"Well,  I  know  nothing  about  it,"  observed  Herr 
Sesemann,  "  but  I  must  beg  of  you  not  to  harbor  any 
suspicions  of  my  most  honorable  ancestors.  And  now 
call  Sebastian  into  the  dining-room  ;  I  wish  to  talk  with 
him  alone." 

Herr  Sesemann  went  into  the  dining-room,  and  Sebas- 
tian made  his  appearance.  Herr  Sesemann  had  not 
failed  to  observe  that  Sebastian  and  Fraulein  Rotten- 
meier were  not  the  best  of  friends ;  so  he  had  his  sus- 
picions. 

"  Come  here,  Sebastian,"  said  he,  beckoning  the  ser- 
vant to  enter.  "  Now  tell  me  honestly,  have  you  not 
your  own  self  been  playing  the  part  of  a  ghost  in  order 
to  plague  Fraulein  Rottenmeier  a  little  .-•     Tell  me  !  " 

"  No,  on  my  word  ;  you  must  not  think  any  such 
thing ;  I  myself  have  not  felt  at  all  comfortable  about 
the  matter,"  replied  Sebastian  with  unmistakable  frank- 
ness. 

"  Well,  if  that  is  the  case,  I  will  show  you  and  the 
brave  Johann  to-morrow  how  ghosts  look  by  daylight. 
Shame  upon  you,  Sebastian !  a  strong  young  fellow 
like  you  running  away  from  ghosts !     Now  go  at  once 


16+  HEIDT 

to  my  old  friend,  Dr.  Classen ;  give  him  my  compli- 
ments, and  tell  him  he  must  come  here  without  fail 
to-night  at  nine  o'clock.  I  have  come  home  from  Paris 
on  purpose  to  consult  him.  It  is  such  a  serious  matter 
that  he  must  spend  the  night  with  me  ;  he  must  make 
his  arrangements  accordingly.  Do  you  understand, 
Sebastian }  " 

"Yes,  indeed;  yes,  indeed  !  Herr  Sesemann  maybe 
sure  that  I  shall  do  as  he  says." 

Sebastian  left  the  room,  and  Herr  Sesemann  turned 
to  his  little  daughter  to  quiet  her  fears  about  the  appa- 
rition, which  he  was  going  that  very  day  to  put  in  its 
true  light. 

Punctually  at  nine  o'clock,  when  the  children  had 
gone  to  sleep  and  Fraulein  Rottenmeier  had  retired, 
the  doctor  appeared,  showing  still  under  his  gray  hair 
a  very  fresh  face  and  two  bright,  kind  twinkling  eyes. 
He  looked  somewhat  anxious,  but  as  his  friend  greeted 
him,  broke  out  into  a  hearty  laugh  and  said,  clapping 
him  on  the  shoulder :  — 

"  Well,  well,  for  one  who  needs  to  be  watched  with, 
you  look  tolerably  hearty,  old  friend." 

"  Have  patience,  my  dear  doctor,"  replied  Herr  Sese- 
mann ;  "  the  one  you  have  to  watch  with  will  look  worse 
when  we  have  caught  him." 

"  What !  a  sick  person  in  the  house  and  one  that 
must  be  caught .''  " 

"  Far  worse,  doctor,  far  worse.  A  ghost  in  the 
house;  the  house  is  haunted!" 

The  doctor  laughed  aloud. 


THE  SESEMANN  HOUSE  IS  HAUNTED  165 

"  A  fine  state  of  affairs,  doctor ! "  continued  Herr 
Sesemann.  "  It  's  a  shame  that  my  friend  Rotten- 
meier  cannot  enjoy  it.  She  is  convinced  that  a  former 
Sesemann  is  wandering  about  here  and  expiating  some 
dreadful  deed." 

"  How  did  she  find  out  about  it .'' "  asked  the  doctor, 
still  very  much  amused. 

Herr  Sesemann  now  told  his  friend  about  the  whole 
proceeding,  and  added  that,  in  order  to  be  prepared  for 
whatever  might  happen,  he  had  left  two  well-loaded 
revolvers  where  they  were  to  watch ;  for  either  the 
affair  was  a  very  undesirable  joke,  which  possibly  some 
of  the  servants'  acquaintances  were  playing,  in  order 
to  frighten  the  people  in  the  house  during  the  master's 
absence  —  in  that  case  a  little  scare,  such  as  a  good 
shot  into  the  air,  could  not  be  unwholesome  —  or  else 
it  was  a  case  of  thieves,  who  had  taken  this  means  to 
make  them  think  they  were  ghosts,  in  order  to  be  safer 
later  on,  as  no  one  would  dare  to  venture  forth ;  if  this 
were  so,  a  good  weapon  might  not  come  amiss. 

During  this  explanation  the  gentlemen  had  gone 
downstairs  and  entered  the  same  room  where  Johann 
and  Sebastian  had  watched.  On  the  table  lay  the  two 
revolvers,  and  two  brightly  lighted  candelabra  stood  in 
the  centre,  for  Herr  Sesemann  did  not  care  to  await 
the  ghost  in  a  dim  light. 

The  door  was  now  partly  shut,  so  that  too  much 
light  need  not  shine  out  into  the  hall  to  frighten  away 
the  ghost.  Then  the  gentlemen  seated  themselves  com- 
fortably in  their  easy-chairs  and  began  to  talk  about  all 


166  HEIDI 

sorts  of  things,  now  and  then  taking  a  little  refresh- 
ment, and  so  the  clock  struck  twelve  before  they  were 
aware  of  it. 

"  The  ghost  has  spied  us  out  and  is  not  coming 
to-night  at  all,"  said  the  doctor. 

"  Have  patience,  it  may  come  at  one  o'clock,"  replied 
his  friend. 

They  went  on  with  their  talking.  It  struck  one.  It 
was  perfectly  still  all  about ;  even  on  the  street  there 
was  no  sound  to  be  heard.  Suddenly  the  doctor  lifted 
his  finger :  — 

"  Sh,  Sesemann  !  don't  you  hear  something  .'*  " 

They  both  listened.  They  heard  the  bar  softly  but 
quite  distinctly  pushed  back,  the  key  turned  twice  in 
the  lock,  and  the  door  was  opened.  Herr  Sesemann 
reached  after  the  revolver. 

"  You  are  not  afraid .-'  "  said  the  doctor,  rising. 

"  It  is  better  to  be  cautious,"  whispered  Herr  Sese- 
mann, seizing  the  candelabrum  with  three  candles  in 
his  left  hand,  and  the  revolver  in  his  right,  and  followed 
the  doctor,  who  proceeded  likewise  provided  with  lights 
and  a  revolver.     They  stepped  out  into  the  corridor. 

Through  the  wide-open  door  the  pale  moonlight 
came  in  and  lighted  up  a  white  form,  which  stood 
motionless  on  the  threshold. 

"Who  is  there }  "  the  doctor  thundered  forth,  so  that 
it  echoed  through  the  entire  length  of  the  corridor,  and 
both  gentlemen,  with  lights  and  weapons,  went  toward 
the  figure.  It  turned  around  and  gave  a  little  scream. 
There  stood  Heidi,  with  bare  feet,  in  her  white  night- 


»«L='h 


THE   SESEMANN  HOUSE  IS  HAUNTED 


167 


clothes,  looking  bewildered  at  the  bright  lights  and 
the  firearms,  and  shivering  and  trembling  from  head 
to  foot  like  a  little  leaf  in  the  wind.  The  gentle- 
men looked  at  each  other  in  the  greatest  astonish- 
ment. 

"  I  really  believe,  Sesemann,  that  it  is  your  little 
water-carrier,"  said  the  doctor. 

"  Child,  what  does  this  mean } "  asked  Herr  Sese- 
mann. "What  are  you  going  to  do.-*  Why  have  you 
come    down    here  .-*  " 

White    as    snow,    from    fright,    Heidi    stood    there 
and  said,  scarcely 
able   to    make   a 
sound :  — 

"  I  don't  know." 

Then  the  doc- 
tor stepped  for- 
ward :  —  .  -, 

"  Sesemann,  the  '''  ^ 
case  belongs  to  my  | 
domain ;  go  and  sit 
down  in  your  easy- 
chair  in  there  for  a 
while.  I  will  first 
of  all  take  the  child 
back  where  she  be- 
longs." 

Whereupon  he  laid  his  revolver  on  the  floor,  took  the 
trembling  child  by  the  hand,  as  a  father  would,  and 
went  upstairs  with  her. 


168  HEIDI 

"  Don't  be  afraid,  don't  be  afraid,"  he  said  kindly,  as 
they  went  up ;  "  only  be  very  quiet ;  there  is  no  harm 
done,  so  never  mind." 

When  they  were  in  Heidi's  room  the  doctor  placed 
his  light  on  the  table,  took  Heidi  in  his  arms,  laid  her 
in  her  bed  and  covered  her  up  carefully.  He  sat  down 
in  a  chair  by  the  bed  and  waited  until  she  was  some- 
what calmer  and  did  not  tremble  in  every  limb.  Then 
he  took  Heidi's  hand  and  said  soothingly:  — 

"  There,  now  everything  is  all  right ;  now  tell  me 
where  you  wanted  to  go." 

"  I  did  n't  want  to  go  anywhere,"  asserted  Heidi ; 
"  I  did  not  go  down  there  myself ;  I  was  only  there  all 
at  once." 

♦'  Indeed  !  and  did  you  dream  anything  in  the  night, 
do  you  know,  so  that  you  saw  and  heard  something 
very  clearly  V 

"Yes,  every  night  I  dream,  and  always  the  same 
thing.  I  think  I  am  with  my  grandfather,  and  I  hear 
the  fir  trees  roaring  outdoors,  and  I  think,  *  Now  the 
stars  are  sparkling  so  brightly  in  the  sky,'  and  I  run 
swiftly  and  open  the  door  of  the  hut,  and  it  is  so  beau- 
tiful there  !  But  when  I  wake  up  I  am  always  in  Frank- 
furt still."  Heidi  began  to  struggle  and  to  swallow 
down  the  lump  that  rose  in  her  throat. 

"  Hm !  and  do  you  ever  have  any  pain  anywhere } 
In  your  head  or  in  your  back  .-•  " 

"  Oh,  no ;  only  something  presses  here  all  the  time, 
like  a  great  stone." 

"  Hm !   somewhat  as  if  you  had   eaten   something 


,  M-'^^Sfc:"'^ 


THE  SESEMANN  HOUSE  IS  HAUNTED  169 

and  then  afterwards  wished  you  could  give  it  back 
again  ? " 

"  No,  not  like  that ;  but  so  heavy,  as  if  I  must  cry 
hard." 

"  Indeed  !  and  then  do  you  cry  right  out  loud  ?  " 

"  Oh,  no,  I  don't  dare  to  do  that ;  Fraulein  Rotten- 
meier  has  forbidden  that." 

"Then -you  swallow  it  down  till  another  time,  don't 
you  }  Really !  Well,  you  like  to  stay  in  Frankfurt, 
do  you  not  t  " 

"Oh,  yes,"  she  replied  faintly;  but  it  sounded  as  if 
she  meant  the  opposite. 

"  Hm !  and  where  did  you  live  with  your  grand- 
father.?" ,    ' 

"  Always  on  the  Aim." 

"  It  is  not  particularly  pleasant  there,  but  rather 
dreary,  is  it  not  .^  ". , ., 

"  Oh,  no  ;  it  is  so  lovely  there,  so  lovely !  " 

Heidi  could  say  no  more ;  the  recollection  of  it  all, 
the  excitement  she  had  just  passed  through,  and  the 
long-restrained  weeping  overpowered  the  child ;  the 
tears  rushed  from  her  eyes  in  streams,  and  she  broke 
into  loud,  passionate  sobbing. 

The  doctor  rose ;  he  laid  Heidi's  head  gently  on  the 
pillow  and  said  :  — 

"  There,  now  cry  a  little  —  it  can  do  no  harm  —  and 
then  go  to  sleep,  and  be  happy  in  your  sleep;  to- 
morrow everything  will  be  all  right." 

Then  he  went  downstairs. 

When  he  was  once  more  in  the  room  where  they  had 


■■--'■--■-.^^t^  J . 


170  HEIDI 

been  watching,  he  drew  the  easy-chair  opposite  his 
waiting  friend  and  explained  to  him,  as  he  listened  with 
eager  expectation  :  — 

"  Sesemann,  in  the  first  place,  your  little  prot6g^e 
walks  in  her  sleep  ;  all  unconsciously  she  has  opened 
the  door  every  night  like  a  ghost  and  pilt  all  your  ser- 
vants into  a  fever  of  fright.  In  the  second  place,  the 
child  is  wasting  away  from  homesickness,  so  that  she 
is  almost  reduced  to  a  little  skeleton  and  will  soon  be 
entirely  so ;  something  must  be  done  for  her  at  once ! 
For  the  first  evil  and  for  the  nervous  excitement  exist- 
ing in  a  high  degree  there  is  but  one  remedy,  namely, 
to  send  the  child  immediately  back  to  her  native  moun- 
tain air ;  for  the  second  there  is  but  one  medicine,  and 
that  the  very  same  thing.  So  send  the  child  home 
to-morrow;  that  is  my  prescription." 

Herr  Sesemann  rose  from  his  chair.  He  walked  up 
and  down  the  room  in  the  greatest  excitement ;  then 
he  exclaimed  :  — 

"  A  sleep-walker  !  Sick  !  Homesick  !  wasted  away 
in  my  house !  All  this  in  my  house !  And  no  one 
noticed  it  or  knew  anything  about  it !  And  do  you 
think,  doctor,  that  I  will  send  the  child,  who  came 
fresh  and  healthy  into  my  house,  back  to  her  grand- 
father miserable  and  wasted  away .-'  No,  doctor,  you 
cannot  expect  that ;  I  can't  do  that ;  that  I  will  never 
do.  Take  the  child  in  hand,  put  her  under  treatment, 
do  what  you  like,  but  make  her  sound  and  healthy,  and 
then  I  will  send  her  home  if  she  wants  to  go  ;  but  first 
give  her  your  aid  !  " 


THE  SESEMANN  HOUSE   IS  HAUNTED  171 

"  Sesemann,"  replied  the  doctor  earnestly,  "  think 
what  you  are  doing !  Her  condition  is  no  illness  that 
can  be  cured  with  powders  and  pills.  The  child  has  no 
delicate  constitution  ;  if  you  send  her  back  now  to  the 
bracing  mountain  air,  to  which  she  is  accustomed,  she 
will  be  perfectly  well  again ;  if  not  —  you  would  not 
like  to  send  her  back  beyond  all  help  to  her  grand- 
father, or  never  send  her  back  at  all,  would  you  ? " 

Herr  Sesemann  stood  still  in  astonishment :  — 

"  Well,  if  this  is  your  advice,  doctor,  there  is  only  one 
way ;  it  must  be  followed  immediately." 

With  these  words  Herr  Sesemann  took  his  friend's 
arm  and  walked  about  with  him  to  talk  the  matter  over 
still  further.  Then  the  doctor  started  to  go  home,  for 
much  time  had  passed  during  their  conversation,  and 
the  bright  morning  light  was  coming  through  the  house 
door,  which  was  opened  this  time  by  the  master  of  the 
house. 


CHAPTER    XIII 

UP  THE  ALM  ON  A  SUMMER  EVENING 

Herr  Sesemann  climbed  the  stairs  in  the  greatest 
agitation  and  went  with  a  firm  step  to  Dame  Rotten- 
meier's  sleeping  room.  Here  he  rapped  so  unusually 
loud  on  the  door  that  the  good  lady  woke  from  sleep 
with  a  cry  of  terror.  She  heard  Herr  Sesemann's 
voice  outside :  — 

'*  Pray  hasten  to  come  into  the  dining-room  ;  prepa- 
rations must  be  immediately  made  for  a  journey." 

Fraulein  Rottenmeier  looked  at  her  clock;  it  was 
half-past  four  in  the  morning ;  she  had  never  risen  at 
such  an  hour  in  her  life  before.  What  could  have  hap- 
pened ?  Curiosity  and  anxious  expectation  made  every- 
thing she  touched  go  wrong,  and  she  made  slow 
progress  in  dressing,  for  she  kept  hunting  about 
uneasily  in  her  room  for  the  things  she  had  already 
put  on. 

Meanwhile  Herr  Sesemann  went  the  entire  length  of 

the  hall  and  furiously  rang  every  one  of  the  bells  used 

to  summon    the    different    servants,    so    that    in    each 

respective  room  a  terrified  form  jumped  out  of  bed  and 

hurried  to  dress,  for  one  and  all  thought  the  same  thing, 

that  the  ghost  had  seized  the  master  of  the  house,  and 

this  was  his  call  for  help. 

172 


UP   THE  ALM  ON  A   SUMMER  EVENING  173 

So  they  came  down  one  after  another,  each  looking 
more  terrified  than  the  last,  and  stood  in  surprise  before 
the  master  of  the  house,  for  he  was  walking  up  and 
down  the  room,  looking  fresh  and  cheerful,  and  not  at 
all  as  if  a  ghost  had  frightened  him. 

Johann  was  immediately  despatched  to  put  the 
horses  and  carriage  in  order,  to  be  brought  round  later 
on.  Tinette  was  ordered  to  waken  Heidi  at  once,  and 
to  make  her  ready  to  take  a  journey.  Sebastian  was 
ordered  to  hasten  to  the  house  where  Heidi's  aunt  was 
at  service  and  to  bring  her  back.  Fraulein  Rotten- 
meier  had  meanwhile  succeeded  in  getting  dressed,  and 
everything  was  all  right  except  her  headdress,  which 
was  on  crooked,  so  that  from  a  distance  she  looked  as 
if  her  face  was  on  backwards.  Herr  Sesemann  ascribed 
her  perplexing  appearance  to  the  fact  that  she  had  been 
awakened  so  early,  and  proceeded  at  once  to  business. 
He  explained  to  the  lady  that  she  was  to  procure  a 
trunk  without  delay,  and  to  pack  up  all  the  things  be- 
longing to  the  Swiss  child  —  Herr  Sesemann  usually 
spoke  of  Heidi  in  this  way,  as  her  name  was  somewhat 
unfamiliar  to  him  —  and  also  a  good  part  of  Klara's 
clothes,  that  the  child  might  have  everything  that  was 
necessary  to  take  with  her;  but  all  must  be  done 
quickly  and  without  stopping  to  deliberate. 

Fraulein  Rottenmeier  stood  as  if  rooted  to  the  floor 
and  stared  at  Herr  Sesemann  in  amazement.  She  had 
expected  that  he  was  going  to  tell  her  in  confidence 
some  horrible  story  of  his  ghostly  experience  the  night 
before,  and  she  would  not  have  been  displeased  to  hear 


174  HEIDI 

it  now  in  the  clear  morning  light ;  instead  of  that  came 
these  very  prosaic  and  particularly  inconvenient  com- 
mands. She  could  not  at  once  overcome  her  surprise. 
She  still  stood  speechless,  expecting  something  further. 

But  Herr  Sesemann  had  no  intention  of  making  fur- 
ther explanations  ;  he  let  the  lady  stand  where  she  was 
and  went  to  his  daughter's  room.  As  he  supposed,  the 
unusual  stir  in  the  house  had  awakened  her,  and  she 
was  listening  to  everything  and  wondering  what  was 
going  on. 

Her  father  sat  down  by  her  bed  and  told  her  what 
the  ghost  really  was,  and  that  in  the  doctor's  opinion 
Heidi  was  in  a  very  bad  condition,  and  that  her  nightly 
wanderings  would  become  more  extensive,  and  perhaps 
she  might  climb  up  to  the  roof,  and  that  would  be  very 
dangerous.  So  he  had  decided  to  send  the  child  home 
at  once,  for  he  could  not  be  responsible  for  her ;  and 
Klara  must  be  reconciled,  for  she  could  see  that  it 
could  not  be  otherwise. 

Klara  was  very  painfully  surprised  by  this  news,  and 
at  first  wanted  to  find  some  way  out  of  the  difficulty, 
but  it  was  of  no  use ;  her  father  remained  firm  in  his 
decision ;  but  he  promised  to  take  Klara  the  following 
year  to  Switzerland,  if  she  would  be  reasonable  now 
and  not  grieve.  So  Klara  yielded  to  what  could  not  be 
helped  ;  she  asked  that  Heidi's  trunk  should  be  brought 
into  her  room  and  packed  there,  so  that  she  might  put 
in  some  things  Heidi  would  enjoy ;  and  this  her  papa 
willingly  granted  ;  indeed,  he  even  encouraged  Klara 
to  give  the  child  a  fine  outfit. 


UP   THE  ALM  ON  A   SUMMER  EVENING  175 

Meanwhile  Aunt  Dete  arrived  and  stood  with  great 
expectation  in  the  vestibule;  for  to  be  summoned  at 
this  unusual  time  must  mean  something  extraordinary. 
Herr  Sesemann  went  out  to  her  and  told  her  how  it 
was  with  Heidi,  and  that  he  wished  she  would  take  the 
child  home  at  once,  that  very  day.  The  aunt  looked 
very  much  disappointed.  She  had  not  expected  such 
news.  She  still  remembered  very  distinctly  the  part- 
ing words  the  uncle  had  spoken  to  her :  never  to  come 
before  his  eyes  again ;  and  having  taken  the  child  to 
him,  and  then  brought  her  away,  it  did  not  seem  advis- 
able to  take  her  back  again.  So  she  did  not  consider 
the  matter  long,  but  said,  with  great  earnestness,  that 
unfortunately  it  would  be  quite  impossible  for  her  to 
take  the  journey  that  day,  and  the  next  day  she  could 
think  of  it  still  less,  and  the  day  after  that  it  would  be 
utterly  impossible  on  account  of  the  work  to  be  done 
then,  and  after  that  she  would  be  no  better  able  to  go. 

Herr  Sesemann  understood  the  aunt's  excuses  and 
dismissed  her  without  saying  anything  further.  He 
then  summoned  Sebastian  and  told  him  that  he  was  to 
prepare  immediately  to  take  a  journey ;  he  was  to  go 
that  very  day  with  the  child  as  far  as  Basle,  and  the 
next  day  to  take  her  home.  Then  he  could  at  once 
return ;  he  would  have  no  statement  to  make,  for  a 
letter  to  the  grandfather  would  explain  everything  to 
him. 

"There  is  one  thing  more  of  great  importance, 
Sebastian,"  said  Herr  Sesemann  in  conclusion,  "  and  I 
want  you  to  look  out  for  it  carefully.     I  am  acquainted 


176  HEIDI 

at  the  hotel  in  Basle,  the  name  of  which  I  have  written 
down  here  on  my  card  for  you.  Show  my  card  there 
and  a  good  room  will  be  given  you  for  the  child ;  you 
must  provide  for  yourself.  Go  first  into  the  child's 
room  and  fasten  all  the  windows  so  securely  that  they 
can  be  opened  only  with  great  force.  When  the  child 
is  in  bed  go  and  fasten  the  door  outside,  for  the  child 
wanders  around  in  the  night  and  might  run  into  danger 
in  a  strange  house  if  she  went  out  and  tried  to  open  the 
house  door  ;  do  you  understand  } " 

"  Aha !  That  was  it,  was  it .?  That  was  it ! "  ex- 
claimed Sebastian  in  the  greatest  surprise,  for  a  great 
light  had  just  been  thrown  on  the  ghosts. 

"  Yes,  that  was  it !  That  was  it !  and  you  are  a  cow- 
ard, and  you  can  tell  Johann  that  he  is  another,  and  all 
of  you  together  a  ridiculous  set  of  men." 

Having  said  this,  Herr  Sesemann  went  to  his  room 
and  sat  down  to  write  a  letter  to  the  Aim-Uncle. 

Sebastian  stood  confounded  in  the  middle  of  the 
room  and  repeated  over  and  over  again  to  himself :  — 

"  If  only  I  had  n't  let  that  coward  of  a  Johann  pull 
me  back  into  the  room,  but  had  gone  after  the  little 
white  figure,  as  I  undoubtedly  should  have  done ! "  for 
now  the  bright  sunshine  distinctly  lighted  up  every 
corner  of  the  sombre  room. 

Meanwhile  Heidi,  entirely  unsuspicious  of  what  was 
going  to  happen,  stood  waiting  in  her  Sunday  frock, 
for  Tinette  had  merely  roused  her  from  sleep,  taken 
her  clothes  out  of  the  closet  and  put  them  on  hurriedly 
without  saying    a  word.     She    never  talked  with  the 


UP    THE  ALM  ON  A   SUMMER  EVENING  Y11 

uncultivated  Heidi,  for  she  considered  her  beneath  her 
notice. 

Herr  Sesemann  walked  with  his  letter  into  the 
dining-room,  where  the  breakfast  was  already  served, 
and  asked :  — 

"Where  is  the  child?" 

Heidi  was  called.  When  she  approached  Herr  Sese- 
mann to  say  "good-morning"  to  him,  he  looked  into 
her  face  inquiringly  :  — 

"  Well,  what  do  you  say  to  it,  little  one  ? " 

Heidi  looked  up  at  him  in  amazement. 

"You  don't  know  anything  about  it  even  now,"  said 
Herr  Sesemann,  laughing.  "  Well,  you  are  going  home 
to-day,  right  away." 

"  Home } "  repeated  Heidi,  unable  to  speak  aloud, 
and  turned  white  as  snow.  For  a  little  while  she  could 
hardly  get  her  breath,  her  heart  was  so  violently  affected 
by  the  impression. 

**  Don't  you  want  to  know  something  about  it } " 
asked  Herr  Sesemann,  laughing. 

"  Oh,  yes,  I  do,"  she  now  was  able  to  gasp  ;  and  ske 
turned  deep  red. 

"  Good,  good  !  "  said  Herr  Sesemann,  encouragingly, 
while  he  seated  himself  and  motioned  to  Heidi  to  do 
the  same.  "  And  now  eat  a  hearty  breakfast  and  then 
into  the  carriage  and  away." 

But  Heidi  could  not  swallow  a  mouthful,  although 
through  obedience  she  tried  to  force  herself  to  eat ; 
she  was  in  such  a  state  of  excitement  that  she  did  not 
know  whether  she  was  awake  or  dreaming,  or  whether 


178  HEIDI 

she  would  not  suddenly  awaken  and  be  standing  at  the 
door  in  her  nightgown. 

"  Sebastian  must  take  plenty  of  luncheon,"  said 
Herr  Sesemann  to  Fraulein  Rottenmeier,  who  was  just 
entering  the  room;  "the  child  cannot  eat,  of  course 
not.  Go  in  to  Klara  until  the  carriage  comes,"  he 
added  kindly,  turning  to  Heidi. 

This  was  what  Heidi  wished,  and  she  ran  out  of  the 
room.  In  the  middle  of  Klara's  room  stood  a  huge 
trunk,  with  the  cover  still  wide  open. 

"  Come,  Heidi,  come  !  "  Klara  called  out  to  her  ;  "see 
what  I  have  had  packed  for  you  !  come,  do  you  like  it  ?  " 

And  she  showed  her  a  quantity  of  things,  dresses 
and  aprons,  underwear  and  sewing  materials ;  "  and  see 
here,  Heidi,"  and  Klara  held  up  a  basket  triumphantly. 
Heidi  peeped  in  and  jumped  high  in  her  delight,  for 
inside  lay  twelve  lovely,  round  white  rolls,  all  for  the 
grandmother.  The  children  in  their  glee  entirely  for- 
got that  the  moment  had  come  for  them  to  part,  and 
when  suddenly  the  call  was  heard  —  "  The  carriage  is 
ready !  "  —  there  was  no  time  left  to  be  sad. 

Heidi  ran  to  her  room  ;  her  beautiful  book  from  the 
grandmamma  must  still  be  there ;  no  one  could  have 
packed  it ;  it  lay  under  her  pillow,  for  Heidi  could  not 
be  parted  from  it  day  or  night.  That  was  laid  in*  the 
basket  on  the  bread.  Then  she  opened  her  closet  to 
see  if  there  was  anything  left  that  had  not  been  packed. 
To  be  sure  —  the  old  red  neckerchief  still  lay  there,  for 
Fraulein  Rottenmeier  had  not  thought  it  worth  packing. 
Heidi  wrapped  it  around  something  else  and  laid  it 


UP   THE   ALM  ON  A   SUMMER  EVENING  179 

on  top  of  the  basket,  so  that  the  red  parcel  was  very 
conspicuous.  Then  she  put  on  her  fine  hat  and  left 
her  room. 

The  two  children  had  to  say  a  speedy  farewell,  for 
Herr  Sesemann  was  already  there  to  take  Heidi  down 
to  the  carriage.  Fraulein  Rottenmeier  stood  at  the 
head  of  the  stairs  to  bid  Heidi  good-bye.  When  she 
noticed  the  strange  red  bundle,  she  took  it  quickly  out 
of  the  basket  and  threw  it  on  the  floor. 

"  No,  Adelheid,"  she  said,  still  finding  fault,  "  you 
cannot  leave  this  house  so ;  you  do  not  need  to  carry 
off  such  a  thing  as  that.     Now  good-bye." 

After  this  Heidi  did  not  dare  to  pick  up  her  bundle 
again,  but  she  looked  beseechingly  at  the  master  of  the 
house,  as  if  she  were  having  her  greatest  treasure  taken 
from  her. 

"  No,  no,"  said  Herr  Sesemann  in  a  very  decided 
voice,  "  the  child  shall  carry  home  whatever  gives  her 
pleasure,  and  if  she  takes  away  kittens  or  turtles  we 
will  not  get  excited  about  it,  Fraulein  Rottenmeier." 

Heidi  quickly  picked  up  her  bundle  from  the  floor, 
and  her  eyes  beamed  with  gratitude  and  pleasure. 

When  Heidi  reached  the  carriage  Herr  Sesemann 
held  out  his  hand  to  the  child  and  said  to  her  with 
friendly  words  that  she  must  think  of  him  and  his 
daughter  Klara.  He  wished  her  a  happy  journey,  and 
Heidi  thanked  him  very  prettily  for  all  the  kindness 
he  had-  shown  her  and  finally  said  :  — 

"And  I  leave  a  thousand  good-byes  for  the  doctor, 
and  thank  him  many  times,"  for  she  had  noticed  how 


180  HEIDI 

he  had  said  to  her  the  night  before  :  "  And  to-morrow 
everything  will  be  all  right."  Now  it  had  all  come 
true,  and  Heidi  thought  he  was  the  cause  of  it. 

Then  the  child  was  lifted  into  the  carriage,  and  the 
basket  and  the  lunch  box  and  Sebastian  followed. 
Herr  Sesemann  called  out  once  more  in  a  friendly 
voice  :  "  A  pleasant  journey  !  "  and  the  carriage  rolled 
away. 

Soon  after,  Heidi  was  sitting  in  the  train  and  hold- 
ing her  basket  firmly  in  her  lap,  for  she  would  not  let  it 
out  of  her  hands  for  a  moment ;  the  precious  rolls  for 
the  grandmother  were  inside,  and  she  had  to  watch 
them  carefully  and  delight  her  eyes  with  a  look  at 
them  every  now  and  then.  Heidi  sat  as  still  as  a 
mouse  for  several  hours,  for  now  she  began  to  realize 
that  she  was  on  the  way  home  to  her  grandfather  on 
the  Aim,  to  the  grandmother,  and  Peter,  the  goatherd ; 
one  thing  after  another  came  before  her  eyes  —  all 
that  she  was  going  to  see  again,  and  she  imagined  how 
everything  would  look  at  home,  and  new  thoughts  kept 
arising  in  her  mind ;  suddenly  she  said  anxiously  :  — 

"  Sebastian,  are  you  sure  that  the  grandmother  on 
the  Aim  is  not  dead  .••  " 

"  No,  no,"  said  he  soothingly ;  "  we  hope  she  's  not 
dead.     She  must  be  still  alive." 

Then  Heidi  became  absorbed  again  in  her  own 
thoughts  ;  only  now  and  then  she  peeped  into  her 
basket,  for  her  greatest  desire  was  to  lay  all  the  rolls 
on  the  grandmother's  table.  After  some  time  she 
said  again :  — 


UP   THE  ALM  ON  A   SUMMER  EVENING  181 

"  Sebastian,  if  we  could  only  be  perfectly  sure  that 
the  grandmother  is  still  alive." 

"  Yes,  indeed !  Yes,  indeed ! "  replied  her  com- 
panion, half  asleep ;  "  she 's  still  alive  ;  I  don't  see 
any  reason  why  not." 

After  a  while  Heidi's  eyes  also  closed  ;  after  the  dis- 
turbance of  the  previous  night  and  the  early  start  she 
was  so  heavy  with  sleep  that  she  did  not  awaken  until 
Sebastian  shook  her  by  the  arm  and  called  out  to  her  : 

"  Wake  up  !  Wake  up  !  We  must  get  out  now,  we 
are  in  Basle  !  " 

On  the  following  morning  they  journeyed  for  several 
hours  more.  Heidi  again  sat  with  the  basket  in  her 
lap,  for  on  no  account  would  she  give  it  up  to  Sebas- 
tian ;  but  to-day  she  did  not  speak,  for  with  each  hour 
her  eagerness  became  more  intense.  Then  suddenly, 
when  Heidi  was  not  thinking  about  it,  came  the  loud 
call  —  "Mayenfeld!"  She  jumped  up  from  her  seat, 
and  Sebastian  did  the  same,  for  he  too  had  been  sur- 
prised. Now  they  stood  outside  with  the  trunk,  and 
the  train  was  whistling  farther  on  up  the  valley.  Se- 
bastian looked  longingly  after  it,  for  he  much  preferred 
traveling  on  in  that  safe  and  easy  way  to  undertaking 
a  journey  on  foot,  which  had  to  end  in  climbing  a 
mountain,  and  might  be  hard  and  dangerous  besides, 
in  this  country  where  everything  was  still  half  wild,  as 
he  supposed.  He  therefore  looked  carefully  about 
him  for  some  advice  concerning  the  safest  way  to 
"  Dorfli."  Not  far  from  the  railway  station  stood  a 
little  wagon,  drawn  by  a  lean  horse  ;  into  this  a  broad- 


182  HEIDI 

shouldered  man  was  loading  several  large  bags,  which 
had  been  brought  by  the  train.  Sebastian  stepped  up 
to  him  and  questioned  him  about  the  way. 

"All  ways  are  safe  here,"  Was  the  curt  reply. 

Then  Sebastian  asked  him  about  the  best  way  one 
could  go  without  falling  over  the  precipices,  and  also 
how  a  trunk  could  be  taken  to  Dorfli.  The  man  looked 
at  the  trunk  and  measured  it  with  his  eyes ;  then  he 
stated  that,  if  it  was  not  too  heavy,  he  would  take  it 
in  his  wagon,  since  he  himself  was  going  to  Dorfli. 
So  some  words  were  exchanged  and  finally  the  two 
arranged  that  the  man  would  take  both  the  child  and 
the  trunk  with  him,  and  that  the  child  could  be 
sent  from  Dorfli  up  the  Aim  with  some  one  that 
evening. 

"  I  can  go  alone ;  I  know  the  way  from  Dorfli  up  the 
Aim,"  said  Heidi,  for  she  had  been  listening  attentively 
while  they  were  making  the  bargain.  A  heavy  load 
was  taken  from  Sebastian's  mind  when  he  found  him- 
self so  suddenly  released  from  the  prospect  of  climb- 
ing the  mountain.  He  now  secretly  beckoned  Heidi 
to  one  side  and  handed  her  a  heavy  roll  and  a  letter  to 
her  grandfather,  and  explained  to  her  that  the  roll  was 
a  present  from  Herr  Sesemann,  which  must  be  put  in 
the  bottom  of  her  basket,  under  the  bread,  and  that 
she  must  take  care  of  it,  so  that  it  should  not  be  lost, 
or  Herr  Sesemann  would  be  frightfully  cross  about  it, 
and  would  never  get  over  it  all  his  life  long ;  the  little 
Mamselle  must  surely  remember  this. 

*'  I  will  not  lose  it,"  said  Heidi  assuringly,  and  placed 


UP   THE  ALM  ON  A   SUMMER  EVENING  183 

the  roll  and  the  letter  in  the  bottom  of  the  basket. 
The  trunk  was  put  into  the  wagon  and  then  Sebastian 
lifted  Heidi  with  her  basket  up  to  the  high  seat,  held 
out  his  hand  to  bid  her  good-bye,  and  once  more  urged 
her,  with  all  sorts  of  signs,  to  keep  her  eyes  on  the 
contents  of  her  basket ;  for  the  driver  was  near,  and 
Sebastian  was  all  the  more  cautious  because  he  knew 
that  he  ought  to  go  with  the  child  himself  to  the  end 
of  her  journey.  The  driver  swung  himself  up  on  the 
seat  beside  Heidi,  and  the  wagon  rolled  off  toward  the 
mountain,  while  Sebastian,  glad  to  escape  the  dreaded 
mountain  journey,  sat  down  in  the  station  to  wait  for 
the  returning  train. 

The  man  on  the  wagon  was  the  baker  of  Dorfii,  and 
he  was  carrying  home  his  bags  of  meal.  He  had  never 
seen  Heidi,  but  like  every  one  else  in  Dorfii  he  knew 
about  the  child  that  had  been  brought  to  the  Aim- 
Uncle.  Besides,  he  had  known  Heidi's  parents  and  at 
once  surmised  that  she  was  the  much-talked-of  little 
girl.  He  wondered  somewhat  why  the  child  was  so 
soon  coming  home  again,  and  during  the  journey  began 
to  talk  with  Heidi :  — 

"  You  are  the  child  who  was  up  with  the  Aim-Uncle, 
your  grandfather,  aren't  you  }  " 

"Yes." 

"  Did  you  fare  badly  that  you  have  already  come 
home  from  so  far .-'  " 

"  No,  I  did  not ;  no  one  can  fare  better  than  I  did  in 
Frankfurt." 

*'  Why  are  you  running  home  then  ? " 


184  HEIDI 

"  Only  because  Herr  Sesemann  allowed  me,  or  I 
should  not  be  coming  home." 

"  Bah !  why  did  n't  you  prefer  to  stay  there,  if  you 
were  only  allowed  to  come  home  ?  " 

"  Because  I  would  a  thousand  times  rather  be  at 
home  with  my  grandfather  on  the  Aim  than  do  any- 
thing else  in  the  world." 

"  Perhaps  you  '11  think  differently  when  you  get  up 
there,"  growled  the  baker;  "but  I  wonder,"  he  said  to 
himself,  "  if  she  can  know  how  it  is." 

Then  he  began  to  whistle  and  said  nothing  more, 
and  Heidi  looked  around  her  and  began  to  tremble 
inwardly  from  excitement,  for  she  recognized  the  trees 
by  the  way,  and  over  yonder  stood  the  lofty  peaks  of 
the  Falkniss  mountain  looking  down  at  her,  as  if  they 
were  greeting  her  like  good  old  friends.  And  Heidi 
greeted  them  in  return,  and  with  every  step  forward 
Heidi's  expectation  grew  more  eager,  and. she  felt  as  if 
she  would  have  to  jump  down  from  the  wagon  and  run 
with  all  her  might  until  she  was  up  there.  However, 
she  remained  still  and  did  not  move,  but  trembled  all 
over.  As  they  came  into  Dorfli  the  clock  was  just 
striking  five.  In  a  moment  a  crowd  of  women  and 
children  gathered  around  the  wagon,  and  two  neighbors 
came  out  to  it,  for  the  child  and  trunk  on  the  baker's 
cart  had  attracted  the  attention  of  all  the  inhabitants, 
and  each  one  wanted  to  know  where  they  had  come 
from  and  where  they  were  going. 

When  the  baker  had  lifted  Heidi  down,  she  said 
quickly :  — 


UP   THE  ALM  ON  A   SUMMER  EVENING  185 

"  Thank  you,  my  grandfather  will  come  for  my 
trunk  "  ;  and  she  would  have  run  away,  but  she  was  held 
fast  on  every  side,  and  there  was  a  tumult  of  voices, 
each  asking  something  different.  Heidi  pressed 
through  the  crowd  with  such  anxiety  on  her  face 
that  they  reluctantly  made  room  for  her  and  let  her 
pass,  and  one  said  to  another :  "  You  see  how  fright- 
ened she  is ;  she  has  every  reason  to  be." 

Then  they  began  to  tell  one  another  how  the  Aim- 
Uncle  for  a  year  past  had  been  worse  than  ever,  and 
would  not  speak  a  word  to  any  one,  and  when  any  one 
came  in  his  way  he  made  up  a  face,  as  if  he  would  like 
to  kill  him  ;  and  if  the  child  knew  anything  in  the 
world  about  it,  she  would  not  run  to  the  old  dragon's 
nest.  But  here  the  baker  interrupted  their  remarks  by 
saying  he  knew  more  about  it  than  all  the  rest,  and 
then  told  them,  with  an  air  of  mystery,  how  a  gentle- 
man had  brought  the  child  as  far  as  Mayenfeld,  parted 
from  her  in  a  very  friendly  way,  and  had  at  once,  with- 
out any  bargaining,  paid  the  fare  he  asked,  besides  add- 
ing a  fee ;  and,  more  than  all,  he  could  say  surely  that 
the  child  had  been  well  off  where  she  was,  and  that  she 
was  anxious  to  come  back  to  her  grandfather.  This 
news  caused  great  surprise  and  was  immediately  spread 
through  all  Dorfli,  so  that  there  was  not  a  house  that 
evening  where  it  was  not  repeated  that  Heidi  had  been 
anxious  to  come  back  from  a  life  of  luxury  to  her 
grandfather. 

Heidi  ran  up  the  mountain  from  Dorfli  as  fast  as  she 
could ;  but  now  and  then  she  would    suddenly  stand 


186  HEIDI 

still,  for  she  quite  lost  her  breath ;  the  basket  on  her 
arm  was  heavy  for  her,  and  besides  it  grew  steeper  and 
steeper  the  higher  she  went.  Heidi  had  only  one 
thought : — 

"  Will  the  grandmother  still  be  sitting  in  the  corner  at 
her  spinning  wheel  ;  has  she  not  died  in  all  this  time  ?  " 

Now  Heidi  saw  the  hut  up  in  the  hollow  on  the 
Aim,  and  her  heart  began  to  throb ;  she  ran  still 
faster ;  her  heart  kept  beating  louder  and  louder.  — 
Now  she  was  up  there  —  she  could  hardly  open  the 
door,  she  trembled  so  —  but  now  !  —  She  ran  into  the 
middle  of  the  little  room  and  stood  there,  completely 
out  of  breath  and  unable  to  speak. 

"Oh,  Heavens!"  sounded  from  the  corner,  "our 
Heidi  used  to  run  in  like  that !  Ah,  if  only  I  could 
have  her  with  me  once  more  while  I  live !  Who  has 
come  in  .-'  " 

"  Here  I  am,  grandmother ;  here  I  am,  really ! " 
exclaimed  Heidi. 

Rushing  into  the  corner  and  getting  on  her  knees 
into  the  old  dame's  lap,  she  seized  her  arm  and  her 
hands  and  snuggled  up  to  her,  and  was  unable  to  say 
anything  more  from  delight.  At  first  the  grandmother 
was  so  overcome  that  she  could  not  speak  a  word ; 
then  she  began  to  stroke  Heidi's  curly  hair  with  her 
hand  and  kept  saying  again  and  again  :  — 

"  Yes,  yes,  it  is  her  hair  ;  and  it  is  her  voice  ;  ah,  dear 
Lord,  that  thou  shouldest  have  permitted  me  this  !  " 

And  two  great  tears  of  joy  dropped  from  her  blind 
eyes  on   Heidi's  hand. 


UP    THE  ALM  ON  A   SUMMER   EVENING 


187 


"Are  you  here,  Heidi  ?   are  you  really  here  ?  " 
"  Yes,  yes,  really,  grandmother,"  said  Heidi  with  all 
assurance ;  "  but    do  not  cry ;  I  am  very  surely  here 
again  and  will  come  to  you  every  day  and  never  go 


away  again ;  and  you  won't  have  to  eat  hard  bread  for 
many  days,  for  see,  grandmother,  do  you  see  ? " 

And  Heidi  now  took  one  roll  after  another  out  of  her 
basket,  until  she  had  piled  up  all  twelve  in  the  grand- 
mother's lap. 

"  Oh,  child !  Oh,  child  !  what  a  blessing  you  have 
brought  me ! "  exclaimed  the  grandmother,  when  the 
rolls  did  not  come  to  an  end,  but  one  kept  following 
another.  "  But  the  greatest  blessing  is  you  yourself, 
child !  "  Then  she  seized  hold  of  Heidi's  curly  hair 
and  stroked  her  hot  cheeks  and  said  again  :  — 


188  HEIDI 

"Say  just  a  word  more,  child;  say  something  more, 
so  that  I  can  hear  you." 

Heidi  then  told  the  grandmother  how  she  had  suf- 
fered, fearing  she  might  perhaps  die  while  she  was 
away  and  not  have  the  white  rolls,  and  she  would 
never,  never  be  able  to  go  to  her. 

Then  Peter's  mother  came  in,  and  for  a  moment 
stood  still  in  astonishment.     Then  she  exclaimed : — 

"  Surely,  it  is  Heidi !  how  can  it  be  possible  !  " 

Heidi  rose  and  shook  hands  with  her,  and  Brigitte 
could  not  wonder  enough  at  Heidi's  appearance,  and 
she  walked  around  the  child,  saying :  — 

"  Grandmother,  if  you  only  could  see  what  a  beauti- 
ful dress  the  child  has  on  and  how  she  looks  ;  I  hardly 
know  her.  And  does  the  little  hat  trimmed  with 
feathers,  on  the  table,  belong  to  you  also }  Just  put  it 
on,  so  I  can  see  how  you  look  in  it." 

"No,  I  will  not,"  said  Heidi  decidedly;  "you  can 
have  it ;  I  don't  need  it  any  longer,  I  still  have  my 
own." 

Whereupon  Heidi  opened  her  little  red  bundle  and 
took  out  her  old  hat,  which  had  become  still  more  bent 
during  the  journey  than  it  was  before.  But  that 
troubled  Heidi  little ;  she  had  never  forgotten  how, 
when  she  was  leaving  her  grandfather,  he  had  called 
after  her  that  he  never  wanted  to  see  her  in  a  hat 
trimmed  with  feathers,  and  that  was  why  Heidi  had 
kept  her  hat  so  carefully,  for  she  always  thought  of 
the  time  when  she  should  go  home  to  him. 

But  Brigitte  said  she  must  not  be  so  foolish  ;    it  was 


UP   THE  ALM  ON  A  SUMMER  EVENING  189 

a  splendid  hat,  and  she  might  sell  it  to  the  teacher's 
little  daughter  in  Dorfli,  and  get  a  good  deal  of  money 
for  it,  if  she  did  not  care  to  wear  it.  But  Heidi  was 
firm  in  her  decision  and  laid  the  hat  gently  in  the  cor- 
ner behind  the  grandmother,  where  it  was  entirely 
hidden.  Then  Heidi  took  off  her  lovely  dress,  and 
she  folded  the  red  neckerchief  over  her  underwaist,  in 
which  she  now  stood  with  bare  arms,  and  then  seized 
the  grandmother's  hand,  saying :  — 

'*  Now  I  must  go  home  to  my  grandfather,  but  to- 
morrow I  will  come  to  you  again  ;  good-night,  grand- 
mother." 

"  Yes,  come  again,  Heidi ;  come  again  to-morrow 
morning,"  said  the  grandmother;  and  she  pressed 
Heidi's  hand  between  her  own  and  could  hardly  let 
her  go. 

"  Why  have  you  taken  off  your  beautiful  dress .-' " 
asked  Brigitte. 

"  Because  I  would  rather  go  to  my  grandfather  with- 
out it,  or  he  might  not  know  me  ;  you  hardly  knew  me 
m  it. 

Brigitte  went  out  of  the  door  with  Heidi,  and  said  a 
few  words  secretly  to  her  :  — 

"  You  can  keep  on  the  dress,  he  will  know  you ;  but 
you  must  take  care  of  yourself,  for  Peterli  says  the 
Aim-Uncle  is  always  very  cross  now  and  never  says  a 
word." 

Heidi  said  "  good-night "  and  went  on  up  the  moun- 
tain with  her  basket  on  her  arm.  The  evening  sun 
shone  all  around  on  the  green  Aim,  and  now  the  snow 


190  HEIDI 

field  on  Casaplana  came  into  sight  and  gleamed  in  the 
distance. 

Every  few  steps  Heidi  had  to  stand  still  and  look 
around,  for  the  high  mountains  were  behind  her  as  she 
climbed.  Now  a  red  glow  fell  over  the  grass  at  her 
feet  ;  she  turned  around ;  there  —  she  had  forgotten 
the  splendor,  and  never  had  seen  it  in  her  dreams  like 
this  —  the  rocky  peaks  on  Falkniss  flamed  up  to  the 
sky,  the  broad  snow  field  was  all  aglow,  and  rosy  clouds 
were  drifting  high  above.  The  grass  all  around  on  the 
Aim  was  golden  ;  from  all  the  crags  it  glimmered  and 
gleamed  down,  and  below,  the  far-reaching  valley  swam 
in  a  golden  vapor. 

Heidi  stood  in  the  midst  of  all  this  glory,  and  bright 
tears  of  joy  and  rapture  ran  down  her  cheeks,  and  she 
had  to  fold  her  hands,  and,  looking  up  to  Heaven,  thank 
the  dear  Lord  aloud  that  he  had  brought  her  back  home 
again,  and  that  everything,  everything  was  still  so  beau- 
tiful, and  even  more  beautiful  than  she  had  thought,  and 
that  it  all  was  hers  once  more.  And  Heidi  felt  so  happy 
and  so  rich  in  the  great  glory  that  she  could  not  find 
words  to  express  her  thankfulness  to  the  dear  Lord. 

Not  until  the  light  all  about  began  to  fade  could 
Heidi  move  away  from  the  place.  But  then  she  ran  so 
fast  up  the  mountain  that  it  was  not  long  before  she 
saw  the  boughs  of  the  fir  trees  above  the  roof,  and  then 
the  roof  itself,  and  then  the  whole  hut,  and  on  the 
seat  beside  it  sat  her  grandfather,  smoking  his  pipe, 
and  over  the  hut  the  old  fir  trees  were  rocking  their 
branches  and  roaring  in  the  evening  wind.     Then  Heidi 


UP    THE   ALM  ON  A   SUMMER  EVENING*         191 

ran  all  the  faster,  and  before  the  Aim-Uncle  could  really 
see  what  was  coming  the  child  rushed  up  to  him,  threw 
her  basket  on  the  ground,  and  hugged  the  old  man. 
In  her  excitement  at  seeing  him  again  she  was  unable 
to  say  anything,  except  to  keep  exclaiming  :  "  Grand- 
father! grandfather!  grandfather!" 

Neither  did  the  grandfather  say  anything.  For  the 
first  time  in  many  years  his  eyes  grew  moist,  and  he 
had  to  pass  his  hand  over  them.  Then  he  loosened 
Heidi's  arms  from  his  neck,  took  her  on  his  knee,  and 
looked  at  her  for  a  moment. 

*'  So  you  have  come  home  again,  Heidi,"  he  said 
then;  "how  is  it.-*  You  don't  look  particularly  fine. 
Did  they  send  you  away  .''  " 

"  Oh,  no,  grandfather,"  Heidi  now  began  fervently  to 
say  ;  "  you  must  not  think  that ;  they  were  all  so  good — 
Klara  and  the  grandmamma  and  Herr  Sesemann.  But 
you  see,  grandfather,  I  could  hardly  bear  to  wait  any 
longer  to  come  home  again  to  you,  and  I  often  thought 
I  should  stifle,  it  choked  me  so  ;  but  I  really  never  said 
anything  about  it,  because  it  would  be  ungrateful. 
And  then  suddenly  one  morning  Herr  Sesemann  called 
me  very  early  ;  but  I  believe  the  doctor  was  the  cause 
of  it ;  but  perhaps  it  tells  all  about  it  in  the  letter  " — 
whereupon  Heidi  jumped  down  on  the  ground,  took  her 
letter  and  her  roll  out  of  the  basket  and  laid  them  both 
in  her  grandfather's  hand. 

"  That  belongs  to  you,"  he  said,  laying  the  roll  beside 
him  on  the  seat.  Then  he  took  the  letter  and  read  it 
through ;  without  saying  a  word  he  put  it  into  his  pocket. 


192  .  HEIDI 

"  Do  you  think  you  can  drink  milk  with  me  still, 
Heidi  ? "  he  then  asked,  while  he  took  the  child  by  the 
hand  to  lead  her  into  the  hut.  "  But  take  your  money 
with  you  ;  you  can  buy  a  bed  with  it,  and  clothes  enough 
to  last  you  for  two  or  three  years," 

"  I  really  don't  need  it,  grandfather,"  asserted  Heidi ; 
"  I  have  a  bed  already ;  and  Klara  packed  up  so  many 
clothes  for  me  that  I  shall  really  never  need  any  more." 

"  Take  it,  take  it,  and  put  it  in  the  cupboard  ;  you 
will  be  able  to  use  it  sometime." 

Heidi  obeyed  and  skipped  after  her  grandfather  into 
the  hut,  where,  delighted  to  see  everything  again,  she 
ran  into  every  corner  and  up  the  ladder;  but  there 
she  suddenly  stood  still  and  called  down  somewhat  con- 
cerned :  — 

"  Oh,  grandfather,  I  no  longer  have  any  bed  !  " 

"  You  will  soon  have  another,"  sounded  from  below. 
"I  didn't  know  that  you  would  return  ;  now  come  and 
get  your  milk  !  " 

Heidi  came  down  and  took  her  seat  on  her  high  stool 
in  the  old  place,  and  then  grasped  her  little  bowl  and 
drank  as  eagerly  as  if  she  had  never  had  anything  so 
precious  within  her  reach  before,  and  when  she  put 
down  her  bowl,  with  a  deep  breath,  she  said :  — 

"  There  is  nothing  in  all  the  world  so  good  as  our 
milk,  grandfather." 

A  shrill  whistle  sounded  outside.  Heidi  shot  out  of 
the  door  like  lightning.  There  was  the  whole  flock  of 
goats,  skipping,  jumping,  and  leaping  down  from  the 
heights  above,  and  Peter  in  their  midst.     When  he  saw 


UP   THE  ALM  ON  A   SUMMER  EVENING  193 

Heidi  he  stood  perfectly  still,  as  if  rooted  to  the  spot, 
and  stared  at  her  speechless.  Heidi  called  out :  "  Good- 
evening,  Peter ! "  and  rushed  in  among  the  goats. 
"  Schwanli !  Barli !     Do  you  know  me  still  .-* " 

The  goats  must  have  recognized  her  voice,  for  they 
rubbed  their  heads  against  her  and  began  to  bleat  pas- 
sionately for  joy,  and  Heidi  called  them  all  by  name, 
one  after  the  other,  and  they  all  ran  like  wild  creatures 
in  confusion  and  crowded  around  her.  The  impatient 
Distelfinck  jumped  high  into  the  air  and  over  two  other 
goats,  in  order  to  get  near  her  at  once,  and  the  timid 
Schneehopli  gave  the  big  Tiirk  a  very  determined  thrust 
and  pushed  him  aside,  so  that  he  stood  looking  much 
amazed  at  the  impudence,  and  raised  his  beard  in  the 
air  to  show  that  it  was  he. 

Heidi  was  beside  herself  with  joy  to  see  all  her  old 
companions  once  more  ;  she  threw  her  arms  around  the 
little  affectionate  Schneehopli  again  and  again,  stroked 
the  violent  Distelfinck,  and  was  pushed  and  jolted  hither 
and  thither  by  thp  fond,  trusting  goats  until  she  came 
quite  near  to  Peter,  who  remained  standing  in  the  same 
place. 

"  Come  down,  Peter,  and  say  good-evening  to  me !  " 
Heidi  called  to  him. 

"Are  you  back  again .-' "  he  finally  managed  to  say 
in  his  astonishment ;  and  then  he  came  forward  and 
took  Heidi's  hand,  which  she  had  been  offering  him 
for  some  time,  and  asked,  as  he  always  did  when  he  was 
returning  home  at  evening  :  — 

"  Will  you  come  with  me  again  to-morrow  .^ " 


194  HEIDI 

"No,  not  to-morrow,  but  the  day  after,  perhaps;  for 
to-morrow  I  must  go  to  the  grandmother's." 

"  It  is  good  to  have  you  back  again,"  said  Peter, 
making  all  sorts  of  wry  faces  from  huge  delight  ;  then 
he  started  homeward  ;  but  he  had  never  before  had 
such  difficulty  with  his  goats,  for  when  he  had  at  last, 
with  coaxing  and  threatening,  succeeded  in  collecting 
them  about  him,  and  Heidi  had  walked  away  with  one 
arm  around  Schwanli's  and  the  other  about  Barli's  neck, 
they  all  with  one  accord  turned  around  again  and  ran 
after  the  three.  Heidi  had  to  go  into  the  shed  with 
her  two  goats  and  shut  the  door,  or  Peter  would  never 
have  succeeded  in  getting  away  with  his  flock. 

When  the  child  came  back  into  the  hut  she  found 
her  bed  already  made  up  again,  wonderfully  high  and 
fragrant,  for  the  hay  had  not  been  in  long,  and  the 
grandfather  had  very  carefully  spread  the  clean  linen 
sheet  over  it.  Heidi  lay  down  on  it  with  great  delight 
and  had  a  refreshing  sleep,  such  as  she  had  not  enjoyed 
for  a  whole  long  year.  During  the  night  her  grandfather 
left  his  couch  at  least  ten  times,  climbed  the  ladder  and 
listened  carefully  to  see  if  Heidi  was  still  asleep  and 
was  not  restless,  and  looked  at  the  window  where  the 
moon  used  to  shine  in  on  Heidi's  bed,  to  see  if  the  hay 
he  had  stuffed  into  it  was  still  there,  for  the  moon 
should  be  kept  out  henceforth.  But  Heidi  slept  right 
on  and  wandered  about  no  longer,  for  her  great,  hungry 
longing  was  satisfied  ;  she  had  seen  all  the  mountains 
and  cliffs  in  the  evening  glow  again,  she  had  heard  the 
fir  trees  roaring,  she  was  at  home  again  on  the  Aim. 


CHAPTER    XIV 

SUNDAY    WHEN   THE  CHURCH   BELLS   RING 

Heidi  stood  under  the  swaying  branches  of  the  fir 
trees,  waiting  for  her  grandfather,  who  was  going  to 
fetch  the  trunk  from  Dorfli,  while  she  stayed  with 
the  grandmother.  The  child  could  hardly  wait  to 
see  the  grandmother  again  and  to  hear  how  the  rolls 
had  tasted  ;  yet  the  time  did  not  seem  long  to  her,  for 
she  could  not  listen  enough  to  the  tones  of  her  native 
sighing  fir  trees  above  her,  and  drink  in  all  the  fra- 
grance and  brightness  of  the  green  pastures  and  their 
golden  blossoms. 

The  grandfather  came  out  of  the  hut,  took  a  look 
around  him,  and  then  said  in  a  satisfied  tone  :  — 

"  Well,  now  we  can  go." 

It  was  Saturday  night,  and  on  that  day  it  was  the 
Aim-Uncle's  custom  to  clean  and  put  everything  in 
order  in  the  hut,  in  the  shed,  and  all  about ;  to-day  he 
had  taken  the  morning  for  this,  in  order  to  go  with 
Heidi  in  the  afternoon,  and  so  everything  all  around 
looked  neat  and  to  his  satisfaction.  At  Peter's  hut 
they  parted  and  Heidi  ran  in.  The  grandmother  had 
already  heard  her  step,  and  called  out  to  her  affection- 
ately :  — 

"Have  you  come,  child }    Have  you  come  again.?" 

>95 


1%  HEIDI 

Then  she  grasped  Heidi's  hand  and  held  it  very 
tightly,  for  she  still  feared  that  the  child  might  be  taken 
away  from  her  again.  And  now  the  grandmother  had 
to  tell  how  the  rolls  had  tasted,  and  she  said  she  had 
been  so  refreshed  by  them  that  she  thought  she  was 
much  stronger  that  day  than  she  had  been  for  a  long 
time,  and  Peter's  mother  added  that  the  grandmother 
was  much  worried  lest  the  rolls  should  soon  be  gone, 
and  she  had  eaten  only  one  roll  the  diy  before  and 
that  day  together,  and  she  really  could  not  gain  much 
strength  ;  they  would  last  only  a  week  if  she  should  eat 
one  a  day.  Heidi  listened  attentively  to  Brigitte  and 
remained  for  some  time  thinking.  Then  she  found  a 
way  out  of  the  difficulty. 

"  I  know  now  what  I  will  do,  grandmother,"  she  said 
with  eager  delight. 

"  I  will  write  a  letter  to  Klara,  and  she  will  surely 
send  me  as  many  more  rolls  and  twice  as  many  as  there 
are,  for  I  had  a  great  pile  just  like  them  in  my  closet, 
and  when  they  were  taken  away  from  me  Klara  said  she 
would  give  me  just  as  many  more,  and  she  will  do  so." 

"  Dear  me  !  "  said  Brigitte,  "  that  is  a  good  idea ;  but 
think,  they  would  grow  hard,  too.  If  we  only  had  a 
spare  penny  now  and  then  ;  the  baker  down  in  Dorfli 
makes  them,  but  I  am  hardly  able  to  pay  for  the  black 
bread." 

Then  a  bright,  joyful  light  spread  over  Heidi's  face. 

"  Oh,  I  have  a  tremendous  lot  of  money,  grand- 
mother ! "  she  exclaimed  triumphantly,  and  danced  up 
and  down  with  delight ;   "  now  I  know  what  I  can  do 


SUNDA  Y  WHEN   THE   CHURCH  BELLS  RING       197 

with  it.    Every  single  day  you  must  have  a  new  roll,  and 
two  on  Sunday,  and  Peter  can  bring  them  up  from  Dorfli." 

"No,  no,  child!"  said  the  grandmother  in  disap- 
proval, "  that  cannot  be  ;  the  money  was  not  given  you 
for  that ;  you  must  give  it  to  your  grandfather,  and  he 
will  tell  you  what  you  are  to  do  with  it." 

But  Heidi  would  not  be  disturbed  in  her  delight ;  she 
shouted  and  danced  around  the  room  and  exclaimed 
again  and  again  :  — 

**  Now  the  grandmother  can  eat  a  roll  every  day  and 
will  grow  quite  strong  again,  and  —  oh,  grandmother!" 
she  cried  with  new  delight,  "if  you  should  grow  so 
well,  it  would  really  become  light  to  you  again  ;  it  is 
perhaps  only  because  you  are  so  weak." 

The  grandmother  was  silent ;  she  did  not  wish  to  dis- 
turb the  child's  pleasure.  In  her  dancing  around,  Heidi 
suddenly  spied  the  grandmother's  old  hymn  book,  and 
a  new  and  delightful  thought  came  to  her. 

"  Grandmother,  I  can  read  quite  well  now ;  shall  I 
read  a  song  out  of  your  old  book .? " 

"Oh,  yes!"  said  the  grandmother,  overcome  with 
delight ;  "  can  you  really  do  that,  can  you  do  that .?  " 

Heidi  climbed  up  in  a  chair  and  took  down  the  book, 
covered  thick  with  dust,  for  it  had  long  lain  there  un- 
disturbed. She  then  wiped  it  clean,  sat  down  with  it 
on  her  stool  beside  the  grandmother,  and  asked  what 
she  should  read. 

"Whatever  you  like,  child,  whatever  you  like";  and 
the  grandmother  sat  with  eager  expectancy,  and  pushed 
the  spinning  wheel  a  little  way  from  her. 


198  HEIDI 

Heidi  turned  the  leaves  and  read  a  line  here  and 
there. 

"  Here  is  something  about  the  sun ;  I  will  read  you 
that,  grandmother";  and  Heidi  began,  and  became  more 
and  more  eager  and  interested  as  she  read  :  — 

"  The  S7in  overflowing 
With  splendor  glowing, 
From  golden  fountains 
Pours  o''er  our  mountains 
A  spirit-quickening  glory  of  light. 

Below  I  wandered 

And,  mournful,  pondered. 

But  now  arising 

With  change  surprising 

I  turn  to  the  sky  my  enraptured  sight. 

Mine  eye  beholdeth 

What  God  unfoldeth 

To  tell  the  story 

Of  boundless  glory  — 

How  vast  the  sum  of  his  infinite  might! 

Behind  those  portals 

Henceforth  immortals. 

Our  friends  arisen 

From  fleshly  prison 

Have  entered  the  realms  of  boundless  delight. 

While  dll  things  falter, 

God  doth  not  alter : 

No  shade  of  turning 

In  his  discerning :  — 

His  word  and  will  are  eternal  right! 


SUNDAY  WHEN   THE   CHURCH  BELLS  RING       199 

His  grace  unbounded 

In  love  is  founded; 

The  humblest  creature 

May  share  His  nature  — 

The  lowest  depth  and  the  highest  height. 

To-day  we  languish 

In  grief  and  anguish. 

But  earthly  sorrow 

Shall  fade  to-morrow :  ■ — 

After  the  storm  the  sun  shines  bright. 

Sweet  peace  and  pleasure 

In  boundless  measure 

We  know  is  given 

In  the  gardens  of  heaven ; 

And  thither  my  hopes  yearn  day  and  night!" 

The  grandmother  sat  still  with  folded  hands  and  an 
expression  of  indescribable  joy  on  her  face,  such  as 
Heidi  had  never  seen  there  before,  although  the  tears 
were  running  down  her  cheeks.  When  Heidi  stopped 
reading  she  said  entreatingly  :  — 

"  Oh,  just  once  more,  Heidi,  let  me  hear  it  just  once 
more :  — 

'■To-day  we  languish 

In  grief  and  anguish.''  " 

And  the  child  began  again  and  read  with  eager 
delight :  — 

"  To-day  we  languish 
In  grief  and  anguish. 
But  earthly  sorrow 
Shall  fade  to-morrow:  — 
After  the  storm  the  sun  shines  bright. 


200  HEIDI 

Sweet  peace  and  pleasure 

In  boundless  meastire 

We  know  is  given 

In  the  gardens  of  heaven ; 

And  thither  my  hopes  yearn  day  and  night  f^'' 

"  Oh,  Heidi,  that  gives  me  light !  it  gives  me  light 
in  my  heart.  Oh,  how  much  good  you  have  done  me, 
Heidi!" 

The  grandmother  repeated  the  joyful  words  again 
and  again ;  and  Heidi  beamed  with  pleasure,  and  had 
to  keep  looking  at  the  grandmother,  for  she  had  never 
seen  her  so  before.  She  no  longer  had  the  old  expres- 
sion on  her  face,  but  appeared  so  happy  and  thankful, 
as  if  she  already  looked  with  new  bright  eyes  into  the 
beautiful  heavenly  garden. 

Then  some  one  knocked  on  the  window,  and  Heidi 
saw  her  grandfather  outside,  beckoning  to  her  to  go 
home  with  him.  She  followed  quickly,  but  not  with- 
out assuring  the  grandmother  that  she  would  come 
again  the  next  day,  and  that  even  if  she  went  up  to  the 
pasture  with  Peter  she  would  only  stay  there  half  the 
day,  for  to  be  able  to  make  it  light  again  for  the  grand- 
mother was  to  her  the  very  greatest  pleasure  she  could 
enjoy,  even  much  greater  than  to  be  in  the  sunny  pas- 
ture among  the  flowers  and  goats. 

Brigitte  ran  out  at  the  door  after  Heidi  with  her  dress 
and  hat,  that  she  might  take  them  with  her.  She  took 
the  dress  on  her  arm,  for  her  grandfather  knew  her 
now,  she  thought ;  but  the  hat  she  obstinately  refused. 
Brigitte  must  keep  it  for  her,  for  she  would  never,  never 


SUNDAY  WHEN   THE    CHURCH  BELLS  RING       20) 

put  it  on  her  head  again.  Heidi  was  so  full  of  her 
experiences  that  she  had  to  tell  her  grandfather  at  once 
all  that  had  delighted  her  heart :  that  they  could  get 
white  bread  for  the  grandmother  down  in  Dorfii  if  they 
only  had  the  money,  and  that  it  had  suddenly  become 
so  light  to  the  grandmother,  and  she  looked  so  well ; 
and  when  Heidi  had  described  it  all  to  the  end  she  went 
back  to  the  beginning  and  said  very  confidently :  — 

"Surely,  grandfather,  if  the  grandmother  is  not 
willing,  you  will  give  me  all  my  money,  so  that  I  can 
give  Peter  a  piece  for  a  roll  every  day  and  two  on 
Sunday?" 

"  But  the  bed,  Heidi  ?  "  said  the  grandfather  ;  "  a  real 
bed  would  be  a  good  thing  for  you,  and  then  there 
would  be  enough  left  for  many  rolls." 

But  Heidi  gave  her  grandfather  no  peace,  and  assured 
him  that  she  slept  much  better  on  her  bed  of  hay  than 
she  had  ever  done  in  her  pillowed  bed  in  Frankfurt, 
and  begged  so  urgently  and  incessantly  that  her  grand- 
father finally  said :  — 

"The  money  is  yours,  do  whatever  pleases  you  ;  you 
can  get  bread  for  the  grandmother  with  it  for  many  a 
long  year." 

Heidi  shouted  for  joy  :  — 

"Oh,  hurrah  !  now  the  grandmother  will  never  have 
to  eat  hard  black  bread  any  more,  and  oh,  grandfather, 
now  everything  is  lovelier  than  it  ever  was  before  in 
our  lives !  " 

Heidi  took  hold  of  her  grandfather's  hand  and 
jumped   into  the  air  and   shouted   as   merrily  as  the 


birds  in  the  sky.  But  all  of  a  sudden  she  grew  quite 
serious  and  said  :  — 

*'  Oh,  if  the  dear  Lord  had  done  right  away  what  I 
prayed  for  so  hard,  then  everything  would  not  be  as  it 
is  now.  I  should  only  have  come  home  again  and 
brought  the  grandmother  just  a  few  rolls,  and  shouldn't 
have  been  able  to  read  to  her,  which  does  her  good ; 
but  the  dear  Lord  had  already  thought  it  all  out  so 
much  better  than  I  knew;  the  grandmamma  told  me 
so,  and  now  it  has  all  come  true.  Oh,  how  glad  I  am 
that  the  dear  Lord  did  not  grant  what  I  asked  and 
longed  for !  Now  I  will  always  pray  as  the  grand- 
mamma told  me,  and  always  thank  the  dear  Lord,  and 
if  he  does  not  do  what  I  ask,  then  I  will  surely  think  all 
the  same,  it  will  just  be  as  it  was  in  Frankfurt ;  the  dear 
Lord  is  planning  something  much  better.  But  we  will 
pray  every  day,  won't  we,  grandfather.^*  And  we  will 
never  forget  Him,  so  that  the  dear  Lord  may  never 
forget  us." 

"And  if  one  should  do  so.-*"  murmured  the  grand- 
father. 

"  Oh,  it  would  not  be  well  for  him,  for  then  the  dear 
Lord  would  forget  him,  too,  and  let  him  go  away,  and  if 
he  should  get  into  trouble  and  complain,  nobody  would 
pity  him,  but  everybody  would  say  :  *  He  first  ran  away 
from  the  dear  Lord ;  now  the  dear  Lord,  who  might 
have  helped  him,  lets  him  go.'  " 

''That  is  true,  Heidi ;  how  did  you  know  it  ">.  " 

"From  the  grandmamma;  she  told  me  all  about 
it." 


SUNDAY  WHEN   THE    CHURCH  BELLS  RING       203 

The  grandfather  was  silent  for  a  while.  Then  he 
said  to  himself,  following  his  own  thoughts :  — 

"And  if  it  is  so,  then  it  is  so;  no  one  can  go  back, 
and  whomever  God  has  forgotten,  He  has  forgotten." 

"  Oh,  no,  grandfather ;  one  can  go  back  ;  that  I  know, 
too,  from  the  grandmamma ;  and  then  it  says  so  in  the 
beautiful  story  in  my  book ;  but  you  don't  know  about 
that ;  we  are  almost  home,  and  you  shall  see  how  beau- 
tiful the  story  is." 

Heidi,  in  her  eagerness  to  get  home,  hurried  faster 
and  faster  the  last  part  of  the  way,  and  they  had  scarcely 
reached  the  top  when  she  let  go  her  grandfather's  hand 
and  ran  into  the  hut.  Her  grandfather  had  put  half  of 
the  things  from  the  trunk  into  a  basket,  for  the  entire 
trunk  was  too  heavy  for  him  to  carry.  He  now  took 
the  basket  from  his  back  and  then  sat  down  on  the 
bench  and  became  absorbed  in  thought.  Heidi  came 
running  out  again,  with  her  big  book  under  her  arm. 

"  Oh,  this  is  good,  grandfather,  that  you  are  already 
sitting  down  here  "  ;  and  with  one  bound  Heidi  was  by 
his  side  and  had  found  her  story,  for  she  had  read  it  so 
often  over  and  over  again,  that  the  book  opened  of 
itself  at  the  place.  Heidi  then  read  with  great  feeling 
about  the  Prodigal  Son. 

"Isn't  that  a  beautiful  story,  grandfather.''"  asked 
Heidi,  when  he  sat  in  silence  and  she  had  expected  him 
to  be  delighted  and  surprised. 

"  Yes,  Heidi,  the  story  is  beautiful,"  said  her  grand- 
father ;  but  his  face  was  so  serious  that  Heidi  became 
cjuite  still  and  looked  at  her  pictures.     She  cjuietly 


204  HEIDI 

pushed  her  book  in  front  of  her  grandfather  and  said  : 
"  See,  how  happy  he  is,"  and  pointed  with  her  finger 
to  the  picture  of  his  return  home,  where  he  stands  in 
fresh  garments  beside  his  father,  and  once  more  belongs 
to  him  as  his  son. 

A  few  hours  later,  when  Heidi  had  long  been  wrapt 
in  deep  sleep,  her  grandfather  climbed  the  little  ladder ; 
he  put  his  lamp  beside  Heidi's  bed  so  that  the  light  fell 
on  the  sleeping  child.  She  lay  there  with  folded  hands, 
for  Heidi  had  not  forgotten  to  pray.  On  her  rosy  face 
was  an  expression  of  peace  and  blessed  trust  that  must 
have  appealed  to  her  grandfather,  for  he  stood  there  a 
long,  long  time  without  moving  or  taking  his  eyes  from 
the  sleeping  child.  Then  he,  too,  folded  his  hands  and 
half  aloud,  with  bowed  head,  said  :  — 

"  Father,  I  have  sinned  against  Heaven  and  before 
Thee  and  am  no  more  worthy  to  be  called  Thy  son!" 
and  great  tears  rolled  down  his  cheeks. 

In  the  early  daylight  the  Aim-Uncle  stood  in  front 
of  his  hut,  looking  around  with  beaming  eyes.  The 
Sunday  morning  glistened  and  shone  over  mountain 
and  valley.  The  sound  of  early  bells  came  up  from 
below,  and  the  birds  in  the  fir  trees  were  beginning 
their  morning  songs. 

The  grandfather  stepped  back  into  the  hut. 

"  Come,  Heidi !  "  he  called  from  below.  "  The  sun 
is  up !  Put  on  a  good  dress,  and  we  will  go  to  church 
together ! " 

It  did  not  take  Heidi  long ;  this  was  an  entirely  new 
call  from  her  grandfather,  and  she  felt  that  she  must 


SUNDAY  WHEN  THE   CHURCH  BELLS  RING      205 


follow  quickly.  In  a  short  time  she  came  running 
down  in  her  fine  Frankfurt  dress,  but  she  remained 
standing  in  front  of  her  grandfather  and  looked  at 
him  in  great  surprise. 

"  Oh,  grandfather,   I  have   never  seen  you  look  so 
before !  "  she  exclaimed  at  last,  "  and  you  have  never 


worn  the  coat  with  the  silver  buttons.  Oh,  you  are  so 
splendid  in  your  beautiful  Sunday  coat !  " 

The  old  man  looked  at  the  child  with  a  contented 
smile  and  said  :  — 

"  And  you  in  yours  ;  now  come  !  " 

He  took  Heidi's  hand  in  his,  and  thus  they  went 
together  down  the  mountain. 

The  clear-toned  bells  were  now  sounding  in  every 


206  HEIDI 

direction,  and  fuller  and  richer  as  they  came  nearer, 
and  Heidi  listened  with  delight  and  said  :  — 

"  Do  you  hear  them,  grandfather  ?  it  is  like  a  great, 
great  festival." 

Down  in  Dorfli  the  people  were  already  in  the  church 
and  just  beginning  to  sing  when  the  grandfather  and 
Heidi  entered  and  seated  themselves  far  back  in  the 
last  seat.  But  in  the  midst  of  the  singing  the  person 
sitting  next  them  nudged  his  neighbor  with  his  elbow 
and  said :  — 

**  Have  you  noticed  }     The  Aim-Uncle  is  in  church  !  " 

And  the  person  nudged  touched  the  next  one  and  so 
on,  and  in  a  short  time  it  was  whispered  in  every  corner  : 
"  The  Aim-Uncle !  The  Aim-Uncle !  "  and  almost  all 
the  women  had  to  turn  their  heads  for  a  moment,  and 
most  of  them  lagged  in  the  singing,  so  that  the  leader 
had  the  greatest  difficulty  in  keeping  the  time. 

But  when  the  pastor  began  to  preach  they  became 
attentive,  for  there  was  such  warm  praise  and  thanks- 
giving in  his  words  that  all  the  listeners  were  affected 
by  it,  and  it  was  as  if  a  great  joy  had  happened  to  them 
all.  When  the  service  was  over,  the  Aim-Uncle  went 
out  with  the  child  by  the  hand  and  walked  to  the  par- 
sonage. All  those  who  went  out  with  him,  and  those 
who  were  standing  outside,  gazed  after  him,  and  most 
followed  to  see  whether  he  really  went  into  the  parson- 
age ;  he  did  so.  Then  they  gathered  in  groups  and 
discussed  in  great  excitement  this  unheard-of  thing  that 
the  Aim-Uncle  had  been  in  church,  and  they  all  looked 
eagerly  toward  the  parsonage  to  see  how  he  woulcj 


StJMDAY  WHk^  Tlik  CkURCk  BELLS  RING      207 

come  out,  whether  in  scorn  and  strife  or  in  peace  with 
the  pastor,  for  they  had  no  idea  what  had  brought  the 
old  man  down  and  what  it  really  meant.  But  there 
was  already  a  change  of  feeling  experienced  by  many  of 
them,  and  one  said  to  another :  — 

"  It  may  be  that  the  Aim-Uncle  is  not  so  bad  as 
they  say ;  you  can  see  how  carefully  he  held  the  little 
one  by  the  hand" ;  and  another  one  said  :  "  That  is  what 
I  have  always  said  ;  and  he  would  not  go  to  the  pastor's 
house  if  he  were  so  thoroughly  bad,  for  he  would  be 
afraid ;  people  exaggerate  a  great  many  things."  And 
the  baker  said  :  — 

"  Didn't  I  tell  you  that  the  first  of  all.''  Do  you  sup- 
pose a  little  child  that  has  all  it  wants  to  eat  and  drink, 
and  everything  else  good  besides,  would  run  away  from 
it  all  and  go  home  to  a  grandfather  if  he  was  wicked 
and  wild,  and  she  was  afraid  of  him }  " 

And  a  very  friendly  feeling  for  the  Aim-Uncle  arose 
and  increased  ;  the  women  also  drew  near.  They  had 
heard  from  Peter  the  goatherd  and  the  grandmother 
so  many  things  that  represented  the  Aim-Uncle  as  quite 
different  from  the  popular  opinion,  and  now  all  at  once 
it  seemed  as  if  they  were  waiting  to  welcome  an  old 
friend  who  had  long  been  absent. 

Meanwhile  the  Aim-Uncle  had  gone  to  the  study 
door  and  knocked.  The  pastor  opened  it  and  met  the 
visitor,  not  with  surprise,  as  he  might  have  done,  but  as 
if  he  were  expecting  him.  His  unusual  appearance  in 
the  church  could  not  have  escaped  him.  He  grasped 
the  old  man's  hand  and  shook  it  heartily,  and  the  Aim- 


208  HEIDI 

Uncle  stood  in  silence,  and  at  first  could  not  say  a 
word,  for  he  was  not  prepared  for  such  a  warm  greet- 
ing.    Then  he  collected  himself  and  said  :  — 

"  I  have  come  to  ask  the  pastor  to  forget  the  words 
I  said  to  him  on  the  Aim,  and  that  he  will  not  bear  me 
ill  will  for  being  obstinate  toward  his  well-meant  advice. 
The  pastor  was  right  in  all  that  he  said,  and  I  was 
wrong  ;  but  I  will  now  follow  his  advice,  and  next  win- 
ter take  up  quarters  in  Dorfli,  for  the  severe  weather 
up  yonder  is  not  good  for  the  child  ;  she  is  too  delicate. 
And  even  if  the  people  down  here  look  at  me  askance, 
as  one  who  is  not  to  be  trusted,  I  deserve  nothing 
better,  and  certainly  the  pastor  will  not  do  so." 

The  pastor's  friendly  eyes  beamed  with  delight.  He 
took  the  old  man's  hand  once  more  and  pressed  it  in 
his,  and  said  with  emotion  :  — 

"  Neighbor,  you  went  to  the  right  church  before  you 
came  down  to  mine  ;  this  delights  me  !  You  shall  not 
regret  your  willingness  to  come  down  and  live  among 
us  again  ;  you  will  always  be  welcome  in  my  house  as  a 
dear  friend  and  neighbor,  and  I  expect  to  spend  many 
a  pleasant  hour  of  a  winter  evening  with  you,  for  I  find 
your  company  agreeable  and  profitable,  and  we  shall 
find  good  friends  also  for  the  little  girl." 

And  the  pastor  laid  his  hand  very  kindly  on  Heidi's 
curly  head,  and  took  her  by  the  hand  and  led  her  out, 
as  he  accompanied  the  grandfather,  and  when  they 
were  outside  the  door  he  bade  them  farewell. 

All  the  people  standing  round  could  see  how  the 
pastor  shook  hands  with  the  Aim-Uncle,  as  if  he  were 


SUNDA  Y  WHEN  THE   CHURCH  BELLS  RING      209 

his  best  friend  and  he  could  hardly  bear  to  part  with 
him.  Scarcely  had  the  door  closed  behind  the  pastor, 
when  the  whole  assembly  pressed  toward  the  Aim- 
Uncle,  and  each  was  eager  to  be  the  first,  and  so  many 
hands  were  held  out  together  to  him  that  he  did  not 
know  which  he  ought  to  grasp  first. 

One  said  to  him  :  — 

**  I  am  glad  !  I  am  glad,  uncle,  that  you  are  coming 
back  to  us  again  !  "  And  another  said  :  "I  have  long 
wanted  to  speak  with  you  again,  uncle!"  Similar 
remarks  were  heard  on  every  side,  and  when  the  uncle 
replied  to  all  their  friendly  greetings  that  he  intended 
to  take  up  his  quarters  in  Dorfli  again  and  spend  the 
winter  with  his  old  acquaintances,  there  was  great 
rejoicing,  and  it  seemed  exactly  as  if  the  Aim-Uncle 
were  the  best-beloved  person  in  all  Dorfli,  whom  they 
had  had  great  difficulty  to  get  along  without.  Most  of 
them  accompanied  the  grandfather  and  the  child  far  up 
the  Aim,  and  when  they  left  them  each  one  wished 
the  Aim-Uncle  to  promise  to  call  on  him  when  he  came 
down  again.  And  wheuv  the  people  turned  to  go  down 
the  mountain  the  old  man  stood  for  a  long  time  gazing 
after  them,  and  a  warm  light  was  spread  over  his  face, 
as  if  the  sun  shone  out  from  within  him.  Heidi  looked 
steadily  at  him  and  said  with  delight :  — 

"  Grandfather,  you  never  looked  so  handsome  before 
as  you  have  to-day  !  " 

"Do  you  think  so.-*"  said  her  grandfather,  smiling. 
"  Well,  you  see,  Heidi,  I  feel  happy  because  I  am  on 
good  terms  with  people  and  at  peace  with  God  and 


210  HEIDI 

man  ;  that  does  one  good  !     The  dear  Lord  was  good  to 
me  when  he  sent  you  up  on  the  Aim." 

When  they  reached  Peter  the  goatherd's  hut  the 
grandfather  straightway  opened  the  door  and  went  in. 

"  Good-day,  grandmother,"  he  called  out;  "  I  think 
we  must  do  a  little  more  mending,  before  the  autumn 
wind  comes." 

'•  Dear  me,  that  is  the  uncle  !  "  exclaimed  the  grand- 
mother, full  of  surprise  and  delight.  "  That  I  should 
live  to  see  this  !  I  can  thank  you  for  all  you  have  done 
for  us,  uncle  !  May  God  reward  you  for  it !  May  God 
reward  you  for  it !  " 

Trembling  with  delight,  the  old  grandmother  held 
out  her  hand,  and  when  the  uncle  shook  it  heartily  she 
continued,  still  holding  him  fast  :  — 

"I  have  one  thing  more  at  heart  to  ask  of  you, 
uncle  :  if  I  have  ever  done  you  any  harm,  do  not  punish 
me  by  letting  Heidi  go  away  again  before  I  lie  at  rest 
in  the  churchyard.  Oh,  you  do  not  know  what  the 
child  is  to  me  !  "  and  she  hugged  Heidi  fast,  for  she 
had  already  drawn  close  to  the  grandmother's  side. 

"  Never  fear,  grandmother,"  said  the  uncle  soothingly, 
*'  that  I  should  punish  either  you  or  myself  in  that  way. 
We  shall  all  stay  together,  and,  God  willing,  for  a  long 
time." 

Then  Brigitte  drew  the  uncle  somewhat  mysteriously 
into  a  corner  and  showed  him  the  lovely  hat  trimmed 
with  feathers,  and  told  him  how  the  matter  stood,  and 
that  she  naturally  did  not  like  to  take  such  a  thing  from 
a  child. 


SUNDA  Y  WHEN  THE   CHURCH  BELLS  RING      211 

But  the  grandfather  looked  well  pleased  at  Heidi  and 
said :  — 

"  The  hat  is  hers,  and  if  she  does  n't  care  to  wear  it 
any  more  it  is  all  right,  and  if  she  gave  it  to  you,  why, 
take  it." 

Brigitte  was  highly  delighted  at  this  unexpected 
decision. 

"It  is  really  worth  more  than  ten  francs  ;  only  see  !  " 
and  in  her  delight  she  held  the  hat  high  in  the  air. 
"What  a  blessing  this  Heidi  has  brought  home  with 
her  from  Frankfurt !  I  have  often  thought  whether  I 
would  not  send  Peterli  to  Frankfurt  for  a  little  while  ; 
what  do  you  think  about  it,  uncle .-' " 

The  uncle's  eyes  twinkled  merrily.  He  thought  it 
could  not  do  Peterli  any  harm,  but  he  would  wait  .for  a 
good  opportunity. 

Just  then  the  person  in  question  came  in  at  the  door, 
after  he  had  first  run  against  it  and  hit  his  head  so 
hard  that  it  made  everything  rattle ;  he  must  have 
been  in  haste.  Panting  and  out  of  breath,  he  now 
stood  in  the  middle  of  the  room,  holding  out  a  letter. 
This  was  something  that  had  never  happened  before  — 
a  letter  addressed  to  Heidi,  which  had  been  given  to 
him  at  the  post-office  in  Dorfii.  They  all  sat  down,  full 
of  expectation,  around  the  table,  and  Heidi  opened  her 
letter  and  read  it  aloud  without  stumbling.  The  letter 
was  from  Klara  Sesemann.  She  told  Heidi  that  since 
she  went  away  it  had  been  so  dreary  in  her  house  that 
she  could  no  longer  bear  it,  and  she  had  begged  her 
father  so  often  that  he  had  at  last  consented  to  take 


212  HEIDI 

the  journey  to  Ragatz  the  coming  autumn  ;  and  the 
grandmamma  would  come  with  them,  for  she,  too,  would 
like  to  visit  Heidi  and  her  grandfather  on  the  Aim, 
Moreover,  the  grandmamma  sent  word  to  Heidi  that 
she  had  done  right  in  wishing  to  buy  the  old  grand- 
mother some  rolls,  and  in  order  that  she  might  not  have 
to  eat  them  dry  she  had  sent  some  coffee,  which  was 
already  on  the  way,  and  if  she  should  come  to  the  Aim, 
Heidi  must  take  her  to  see  the  grandmother. 

Then  there  was  such  joy  and  wondering  at  this  news, 
and  so  much  to  tell  and  ask  about,  for  the  great  expec- 
tation concerned  all  alike,  that  even  the  grandfather  had 
not  noticed  how  late  it  was  already  getting ;  and  they 
were  all  so  happily  content  at  the  prospect  of  the  days 
to  come,  and  almost  even  more  in  the  joy  of  being 
together  at  the  present  time,  that  the  grandmother 
finally  said  :  — 

"  The  best  of  all  is  for  an  old  friend  to  come  and  give 
us  his  hand  again,  as  he  used  to  do  long  ago ;  it  gives 
one  such  a  comforting  feeling  in  the  heart,  to  find 
everything  that  is  dear  to  us  once  more.  You  will 
come  again  soon,  uncle,  and  the  child  to-morrow .-' " 

This  was  promised  to  the  grandmother  at  once  ;  now 
it  was  time  to  go,  and  the  grandfather  started  up  the 
Aim  with  Heidi ;  and  as  the  clear  bells  from  near  and 
far  in  the  morning  had  called  them  down,  so  now  the 
peaceful  sound  of  the  evening  bells  rising  from  the 
valley  accompanied  them  to  the  sunny  Aim  hut,  which 
shone  in  the  Sunday  evening  light. 


Part  II 


HEIDI    MAKES    USE    OF    WHAT    SHE    HAS 

LEARNED 


CHAPTER   I 

PREPARATIONS    FOR   A    JOURNEY 

The  kind  doctor,  who  had  decided  that  the  child 
Heidi  must  be  taken  back  to  her  mountain  home,  was 
just  passing  along  the  broad  street  toward  the  Sese- 
mann  house.  It  was  a  sunny  September  morning,  so 
bright  and  lovely  that  it  might  be  supposed  that  every 
one  must  delight  in  it.  But  the  doctor  was  gazing  at 
the  white  stones  at  his  feet,  and  did  not  notice  the  blue 
sky  above  him.  In  his  face  there  was  a  sadness  which 
had  never  appeared  there  before,  and  his  hair  had  grown 
much  grayer  since  the  spring. 

The  doctor's  only  daughter,  after  his  wife's  death,  had 
been  very  near  to  him  and  the  joy  of  his  life.  Some 
months  before,  the  blooming  maiden  had  been  taken 
away  from  him  by  death.  Since  then  the  doctor  had 
never  seemed  so  jovial  as  before. 

In  answer  to  the  bell  Sebastian  opened  the  door  with 
great  civility,  and,  when  he  saw  who  it  was,  gave  every 
sign  of  being  a  most  devoted  servant ;  for  not  only  was 
the  doctor  the  best  friend  of  his  master  and  his  little 
daughter,  but  by  his  kindness,  here  as  everywhere,  he 
had  also  won  the  good  will  of  the  entire  household. 

"  Is  everything  as  usual,  Sebastian .''  "  asked  the 
doctor  in  his  customary  friendly  voice,  and  went  up 

2IS 


216  HEIDI 

the  stairs  followed  by  Sebastian,  who  kept  on  making 
all  sorts  of  signs  of  devotion,  although  the  doctor  could 
not  see  them. 

"  I  am  glad  you  have  come,  doctor,"  Herr  Sesemann 
called  out.  "  We  must  once  more  seriously  consider 
the  journey  to  Switzerland;  I  must  hear  from  you 
whether  you  still  abide  by  your  decision  even  now  that 
Klara  seems  to  be  better." 

"  My  dear  Sesemann,  what  is  the  matter  with  you  ?  " 
replied  the  doctor,  taking  a  seat  beside  his  friend.  *•  I 
really  wish  your  mother  was  here ;  with  her  everything 
would  be  plain  and  simple.  But  there  's  no  bringing 
you  to  reason.  This  is  the  third  time  you  have  sent 
for  me  to-day,  although  I  keep  telling  you  the  same 
thing." 

"  Yes,  you  are  right ;  the  matter  must  make  you 
impatient,  but  I  want  you  to  understand,  my  dear  friend," 
and  Herr  Sesemann  laid  his  hand  entreatingly  on  the 
doctor's  shoulder,  "that  it  will  be  far  too  hard  for  me 
to  deny  the  child  what  I  promised  her  so  faithfully,  and 
what  has  made  her  so  happy  day  and  night  for  the  past 
months.  Besides,  the  child  has  borne  all  these  last  bad 
days  so  patiently,  always  hoping  that  the  Swiss  journey 
was  near  at  hand,  and  that  she  would  be  able  to  visit 
her  friend  Heidi  in  the  Alps ;  and  now,  after  the  child 
has  had  so  much  to  bear,  shall  I  with  one  blow  crush  the 
long-cherished  hope }  It  is  almost  impossible  for  me 
to  do  so." 

"  Sesemann,  it  must  be,"  said  the  doctor  very  decid- 
edly ;  and  as  his  friend  was  silent  and  sat  looking  very 


PREPARATIONS  FOR   A  JOURNEY  217 

downcast,  he  went  on  after  a  time  to  say:  "Think 
how  the  matter  stands.  Klara  has  not  for  years  had 
so  bad  a  summer  as  this  last  has  been ;  there  is  no 
question  about  it ;  she  could  not  take  such  a  long 
journey  without  danger  of  the  worst  consequences. 
It  is  now  September ;  it  may  still  be  fine  up  on  the 
Alps,  but  it  must  be  already  very  cool  there.  The  days 
are  growing  short,  and  as  Klara  could  not  stay  over- 
night on  the  mountain  she  would  have  hardly  two 
hours  there.  The  journey  from  Ragatz  would  take 
several  hours,  for  she  would  most  decidedly  have 
to  be  carried  up  the  mountain  in  a  chair.  In  short, 
Sesemann,  it  cannot  be  !  But  I  will  go  in  with  you  and 
talk  with  Klara  about  it ;  she  is  a  sensible  girl,  and  I 
will  tell  her  my  plan.  Next  May  she  shall  first  go  to 
Ragatz ;  there  she  shall  take  the  baths  for  a  long  time, 
until  it  is  warm  and  pleasant  up  on  the  mountains. 
Then  she  can  be  taken  up  there  from  time  to  time, 
and  when  she  is  refreshed  and  strengthened  she  will 
enjoy  these  mountain  excursions  far  more  than  she 
would  now.  You  understand  also,  Sesemann,  that  if 
we  wish  to  cherish  a  slight  hope  for  your  child's  recov- 
ery, we  must  use  the  greatest  care  and  the  most  cautious 
treatment." 

Herr  Sesemann,  who  had  listened  silently  and  with 
an  expression  of  sad  submission,  now  sprang  to  his  feet. 

"  Doctor,  tell  me  honestly,"  he  exclaimed ;  "  have 
you  really  any  hope  for  an  improvement  in  her  condi- 
tion .? " 

The  doctor  shrugged  his  shoulders. 


m  tikwt 

'•  Little,"  he  said  in  a  low  voice.  "But  cortie,  think 
for  a  moment  of  me,  friend  !  Have  you  not  a  dear 
child  who  longs  for  you  when  you  are  away,  and  is 
delighted  when  you  come  home  ?  You  never  have  to 
return  to  a  desolate  house  and  sit  down  to  a  solitary 
table,  and  your  child  is  well  off  at  home.  Although 
she  has  to  be  deprived  of  much  that  others  might 
enjoy,  still  she  is,  in  some  respects,  more  highly  favored 
than  a  great  many.  No,  Sesemann,  you  are  not  so  much 
to  be  pitied ;  you  are  fortunate  to  be  together ;  think 
of  my  lonely  house  !  " 

Herr  Sesemann  began  to  stride  up  and  down  the 
room,  as  he  was  in  the  habit  of  doing  whenever  he  was 
deeply  absorbed  in  any  matter.  Suddenly  he  stood  still 
in  front  of  his  friend  and  clapped  him  on  the  shoulders. 

"  Doctor,  I  have  an  idea ;  I  cannot  see  you  like  this  ; 
you  are  no  longer  the  same.  You  must  get  out  of 
yourself  a  little ;  and  do  you  know  how }  You  shall 
undertake  the  journey  and  visit  the  child  Heidi  in  our 
place." 

The  doctor  was  very  much  surprised  at  this  proposal 
and  would  have  objected  to  it,  but  Herr  Sesemann  gave 
him  no  time.  He  was  so  delighted  and  filled  with  his 
new  idea,  that  he  seized  his  friend  by  the  arm  and  led 
him  to  his  daughter's  room.  The  doctor  was  always  a 
delightful  sight  to  sick  Klara,  for  he  treated  her  with 
great  friendliness,  and  every  time  he  came  he  had 
something  lively  and  entertaining  to  tell  her.  She 
knew  well  why  he  could  do  so  no  longer,  and  she 
wished  she  could  make  him  happy  again. 


PREPARATIONS  FOR  A  JOURNEY 


lY) 


She  held  out  her  hand  to  him ;  and  he  sat  down 
beside  her.  Herr  Sesemann  also  moved  up  his  chair, 
and,  taking  Klara's  hand,  began  to  talk  about  the  jour- 
ney to  Switzerland,  and  how  much  pleasure  he  himself 
had  taken  in  looking  forward  to  it.  He  glided  quickly 
over  the  most  important  fact,  that  it  was  now  out  of 
the  question,  for  he  was  somewhat  afraid  of  the  tears 


that  would  be  sure  to  come.  He  then  passed  on  to 
the  new  plan  and  impressed  Klara  with  the  fact  that 
her  dear  friend  would  derive  great  benefit  by  taking 
this  journey. 

The  tears  indeed  came  and  swam  in  Klara's  blue 
eyes,  although  she  tried  her  best  to  keep  them  back, 
for  she  knew  how  her  papa  disliked  to  see  her  cry. 
But  it  was  hard  to  have  it  ended  when  all  summer  the 
prospect  of  this  visit  to  Heidi  had  been  her  only  joy 


220  HEIDI 

and  comfort  during  the  long,  lonely  hours  which  she 
had  endured.  Klara  was  not  in  the  habit  of  arguing, 
and  she  knew  very  well  that  her  papa  was  denying  her 
only  what  would  lead  to  ill,  and  therefore  ought  not  to 
be.  She  choked  down  her  sobs  and  took  refuge  in  the 
only  hope  remaining.  She  seized  her  good  friend's 
hand,  stroked  it,  and  said  entreatingly  :  — 

"  Oh,  please,  doctor,  you  will  go  to  Heidi,  won't  you  .-* 
and  then  come  and  tell  me  about  everything  up  there, 
and  what  Heidi  is  doing,  and  her  grandfather  and  Peter 
and  the  goats ;  I  know  them  all  so  well.  And  then 
you  must  take  what  I  want  to  send  to  Heidi ;  I  have 
thought  it  all  out ;  and  something  for  the  grandmother, 
too.  Please,  doctor,  do  go ;  and  while  you  are  gone  I 
will  truly  take  all  the  cod-liver  oil  you  prescribe." 

Whether  this  promise  decided  the  matter  or  not  we 
do  not  know,  but  suppose  it  must  be  so,  for  the  doctor 
smiled  and  said  :  — 

"Then  I  must  certainly  go,  Klarchen,  for  you  will 
grow  round  and  strong  as  papa  and  I  would  like  to 
have  you.  When  must  I  start }  Have  you  decided 
that,  too  .? " 

"Certainly;  to-morrow  early,  doctor,"  replied  Klara. 

"Yes,  she  is  right,"  said  her  father;  "the  sun  is 
shining,  the  sky  is  blue,  and  no  time  is  to  be  lost,  for  it 
is  a  shame  not  to  be  enjoying  such  a  day  in  the  Alps." 

The  doctor  had  to  laugh. 

"  Next  thing  you  will  be  reproaching  me  for  not 
being  there  already,  Sesemann,  so  I  shall  do  well  to  get 
away." 


PREPARATIONS  FOR   A  JOURNEY  11\ 

But  Klara  held  the  doctor  fast ;  she  had  first  to  give 
him  all  sorts  of  messages  for  Heidi  and  to  remind  him 
of  so  many  things  which  he  must  notice  and  then  tell 
her  about.  The  things  she  wished  to  send  to  Heidi 
would  be  taken  to  him  later,  for  Fraulein  Rottenmeier 
would  have  to  help  pack  them ;  she  had  just  gone  on 
one  of  her  walks  about  the  city,  and  was  not  likely  to 
return  very  soon. 

The  doctor  promised  to  carry  out  all  her  directions, 
to  start  on  the  journey  as  soon  as  possible,  and  to  give 
her  a  faithful  account  of  everything  he  should  see  and  do. 

Servants  often  have  a  wonderful  faculty  of  finding 
out,  long  before  they  have  been  told,  what  is  going  on 
in  their  master's  house.  Sebastian  and  Tinette  must 
have  possessed  this  faculty  in  a  high  degree,  for  just  as 
the  doctor,  followed  by  Sebastian,  was  going  down  the 
stairs  Tinette  entered  Klara's  room. 

"  Bring  me  this  box  full  of  perfectly  fresh,  nice  cakes, 
such  as  we  have  with  our  coffee,  Tinette,"  said  Klara, 
pointing  to  a  box  which  had  been  standing  ready  for 
some  time.  Tinette  seized  it  by  one  corner  and  swung 
it  disdainfully  in  her  hand ;  after  she  had  closed  the 
door  she  said  pertly  :  — 

"  It  's  well  worth  while." 

When  Sebastian  had  opened  the  front  door  with  his 
usual  politeness,  he  said  with  a  bow :  — 

"  If  the  doctor  would  be  so  kind  as  to  give  the  little 
Mamsell  Sebastian's  regards." 

"Oh,  Sebastian,"  said  the  doctor  pleasantly,  "do 
you  know  so  soon  that  I  am  going  away  .-• " 


222  HEIDI 

Sebastian  was  obliged  to  cough, 

"I  am  —  I  have  —  I  don't  know  certainly  —  oh,  yes, 
I  remember,  as  I  happened  to  be  passing  through  the 
dining-room  just  now  I  heard  the  little  Mamsell's  name 
mentioned ;  it  often  happens  that  we  put  one  thought 
and  another  together,  and  so  —  and  in  that  way"  — 

"  Yes,  indeed  !  yes,  indeed  !  "  said  the  doctor,  laugh- 
ing, "and  the  more  thoughts  one  has,  the  more  one 
knows.  Good-bye,  Sebastian,  I  will  deliver  your  mes- 
sage." 

The  doctor  was  just  about  to  pass  through  the  open 
door  when  he  met  a  hindrance ;  the  strong  wind  had 
prevented  Fraulein  Rottenmeier  from  continuing  her 
walk  ;  she  had  returned  and  was  just  entering  the  door. 
The  wind  puffed  out  the  big  shawl  in  which  she  had 
wrapped  herself ;  she  looked  exactly  as  if  she  was  under 
full  sail.  The  doctor  started  back  instantly,  Fraulein 
Rottenmeier  had  always  shown  a  strange  deference  and 
politeness  toward  this  man.  She,  too,  started  back  with 
marked  affability,  and  for  a  time  they  both  stood  there, 
bowing  and  making  room  for  each  other.  Then  came 
such  a  strong  gust  of  wind  that  Fraulein  Rottenmeier 
was  suddenly  blown  with  full  sail  against  the  doctor. 
He  was  still  able  to  turn  aside,' but  the  lady  was  driven 
a  good  piece  beyond  him,  so  that  she  had  to  turn 
around  again  in  order  to  speak  with  propriety  to  the 
friend  of  the  house.  The  absurd  occurrence  had  put 
her  somewhat  out  of  sorts,  but  the  doctor  had  a  way 
which  soon  smoothed  her  ruffled  temper  and  put  her 
into  good  humor.     He   told  her  about    his   intended 


PktPARATIOI^S  FOk  A  JOURI^EY  111 

journey  and  begged  her,  in  the  most  taking  way,  to 
pack  the  things  for  Heidi,  as  only  she  knew  how  to 
pack  them.     Then  he  took  his  departure. 

Klara  expected  to  have  a  struggle  with  Fraulein 
Rottenmeier  before  she  would  give  her  consent  to  send 
away  all  the  things  that  Klara  had  intended  for  Heidi. 
But  this  time  she  was  happily  disappointed  ;  Fraulein 
Rottenmeier  was  unusually  good-natured.  She  imme- 
diately removed  everything  on  the  large  table,  in  order 
to  spread  out  on  it  all  the  articles  that  Klara  had  put 
together,  and  to  pack  them  before  her  eyes.  This  was 
no  easy  task,  the  things  to  be  done  up  together  being 
of  such  different  shapes.  First  came  the  thick  cloak 
with  the  hood,  which  Klara  meant  for  Heidi,  that  she 
might  be  able  to  visit  the  grandmother  the  coming 
winter  whenever  she  liked,  and  not  have  to  wait  for 
her  grandfather  and  be  wrapped  in  the  sack  to  keep 
from  freezing.  Next  came  a  thick,  warm  shawl  for  the 
old  grandmother,  to  wrap  around  her  when  the  cold 
wind  shook  the  hut.  Then  came  the  big  box  of  cakes, 
also  intended  for  the  grandmother,  that  she  might  have 
something  different  from  rolls  to  eat  with  her  coffee. 
A  huge  sausage  followed  ;  Klara  had  first  intended  this 
for  Peter,  because  he  never  had  anything  but  bread  and 
cheese.  But  she  changed  her  mind,  fearing  lest  Peter 
in  his  delight  should  eat  the  whole  sausage  at  once.  So 
his  mother  Brigitte  was  to  have  it  and  first  take  a  good 
share  of  it  for  herself  and  for  the  grandmother,  and 
then  give  Peter  his  portion  at  different  times.  Then 
there  was  a  little  bag  of  tobacco ;  this  was  for  the 


224  HEIDI 

grandfather,  who  liked  so  well  to  smoke  his  pipe  when 
he  sat  in  front  of  the  hut  in  the  evening.  Last  came  a 
number  of  mysterious  little  bags,  packages,  and  boxes, 
which  Klara  had  taken  special  delight  in  collecting, 
for  Heidi  was  to  find  in  them  all  sorts  of  surprises 
which  would  give  her  great  pleasure.  At  last  the  work 
was  finished,  and  an  imposing  package  lay  on  the  floor 
ready  for  the  journey.  Fraulein  Rottenmeier,  looking 
down  on  it,  became  absorbed  in  thoughtful  contempla- 
tion of  the  art  of  packing.  Klara,  for  her  part,  cast 
looks  of  glad  anticipation  toward  it,  for  she  saw  Heidi 
before  her  as  she  would  jump  and  shout  with  surprise 
when  the  huge  bundle  reached  her. 

Sebastian  then  came  in,  and  swung  the  bundle  up  on 
his  shoulder,  in  order  to  take  it  at  once  to  the  doctor's 
house. 


CHAPTER   II 

A   GUEST   ON   THE   ALM 

The  mountains  were  glowing  in  the  early  dawn,  and 
a  fresh  morning  wind  was  blowing  through  the  fir  trees 
and  rocking  their  old  branches  vigorously  to  and  fro. 
Heidi  opened  her  eyes  ;  the  sound  had  awakened  her. 
This  rushing  sound  always  moved  Heidi  to  the  very 
depths  of  her  soul  and  attracted  her  strongly  to  go  out 
under  the  fir  trees.  She  jumped  from  her  bed  and 
could  hardly  wait  to  dress  herself  properly ;  but  it  had 
to  be  done,  for  Heidi  knew  very  well  that  one  should 
always  be  clean  and  tidy. 

She  then  came  down  the  ladder ;  her  grandfather's 
couch  was  already  empty.  She  ran  outdoors ;  there  in 
front  of  the  hut  stood  her  grandfather,  gazing  up  at  the 
sky  and  all  about,  as  he  did  every  morning  to  see  what 
the  day  was  going  to  be. 

Rosy  clouds  floated  above,  and  the  sky  grew  bluer 
and  bluer,  and  the  heights  and  the  pasture  land  seemed 
flooded  with  bright  gold,  for  the  sun  was  just  rising 
above  the  lofty  cliffs. 

"  Oh,  how  beautiful !  Oh,  how  beautiful !  Good- 
morning,  grandfather,"  Heidi  called  out  as  she  came 
skipping  along. 

225 


226  HEIDT 

"Well,  are  your  eyes  already  opened?"  said  the 
grandfather  in  reply,  offering  his  hand  to  Heidi  to 
give  her  a  morning  greeting. 

Then  Heidi  ran  under  the  fir  trees  and  danced  with 
delight  under  the  swaying  boughs,  as  she  heard  the 
rushing  and  roaring  above,  and  with  every  new  gust  of 
wind  and  loud  blustering  in  the  tree-tops  she  shouted 
for  joy  and  jumped  a  little  higher. 

Meanwhile  the  grandfather  had  gone  to  the  shed 
and  had  milked  Schwanli  and  Barli ;  then  he  brushed 
and  washed  them  for  their  journey  up  the  mountain,  and 
brought  them  outside.  When  Heidi  saw  her  friends, 
she  ran  to  them  and  threw  her  arms  about  the  necks  of 
both  of  them,  greeting  them  affectionately,  and  they 
bleated  gladly  and  trustfully.  Each  of  the  goats  was 
anxious  to  give  proof  of  affection,  and  pressed  closer 
and  closer  to  her  shoulders,  so  that  between  them  she 
was  almost  crushed.  But  Heidi  was  not  afraid,  and 
when  the  lively  Barli  butted  and  pushed  toa  hard  with 
her  head   Heidi  said  :  — 

"  No,  Barli,  you  push  like  the  big  Tiirk,"  and  immedi- 
ately Barli  drew  back  her  head  and  retreated  to  a  proper 
distance,  and  then  Schwanli  stretched  up  her  head  and 
bleated  in  a  superior  way,  so  that  it  was  plain  to  be 
seen  that  she  thought  to  herself,  "  No  one  shall  say 
of  me  that  I  behave  like  Tiirk."  For  the  snow-white 
Schwanli  was  rather  more  dignified  than  Barli. 

Peter's  whistle  from  below  was  now  heard,  and  soon 
all  the  lively  goats  came  leaping  up  the  mountain,  the 
nimble  Disteliinck  bounding  ahead  of  the  others.    Heidi 


A    GUiEST  ON  THE  ALM  IVl 

was  at  once  in  the  midst  of  the  flock,  which  jostled 
her  hither  and  thither  with  loud,  stormy  greetings ;  shfe 
pushed  them  aside  a  little,  for  she  wished  to  make  her 
way  to  the  timid  Schneehopli,  which  was  always  pushed 
away  by  the  larger  goats,  when  struggling  to  reach 
Heidi. 

Peter  now  came  along  and  gave  one  last,  startling 
whistle  to  frighten  the  goats  and  drive  them  on  to  the 
pasture,  for  he  wished  to  have  room  to  say  something 
to  Heidi.  The  goats  sprang  ahead  a  little  at  this 
whistle,  so  Peter  m^s  able  to  come  forward  and  stand 
in  front  of  Heidi. 

**  You  can  come  with  me  again  to-day,"  he  said, 
somewhat  peevishly. 

"  No,  I  cannot,  Peter,"  replied  Heidi.  "  They  may 
come  from  Frankfurt  at  any  moment  now,  and  I  must 
be  at  home." 

"  You  have  said  that  a  good  many  times  already," 
growled  Peter. 

"  But  it  is  still  true,  and  it  will  be  true  until  they 
come,"  replied  Heidi.  ^  "  Don't  you  know  that  I  must 
be  at  home,  when  they  are  coming  from  Frankfurt  to 
see  me  }     Don't  you  know  that,  Peter }  " 

"They  can  come  to  the  uncle,"  answered  Peter  with 
a  snarl. 

The  grandfather's  deep  voice  then  sounded  from  the 
hut  :  — 

"  Why  does  n't  the  army  move  forward  t  Is  it  the 
fault  of  the  field  marshal  or  the  troops  ?  " 

In  a  twinkling  Peter  wheeled  around,  swung  his  rod 


228  HEIDI 

in  the  air,  making  it  whistle,  and  all  the  goats,  knowing 
the  sound  well,  started  off,  and,  with  Peter  behind 
them,  ran  at  full  speed  up  the  mountain. 

Since  Heidi  had  returned  home  to  her  grandfather, 
every  now  and  then  she  would  remember  something 
which  she  had  not  thought  of  before.  So  every  morning 
she  tried  hard  to  make  her  bed,  smoothing  it  until  it 
looked  quite  even.  Then  she  ran  about  the  hut,  placing 
every  chair  in  its  place,  and  if  anything  was  lying  or 
hanging  about,  she  put  it  tidily  into  the  closet.  Then 
she  brought  a  cloth,  climbed  up  on  a  stool,  and  rubbed 
the  table  until  it  was  perfectly  clean.  When  her  grand- 
father came  in  again,  he  would  look  around  him  with 
satisfaction  and  say  :  — 

"  Now,  it  is  always  like  Sunday  here ;  Heidi  did  not 
go  away  for  nothing." 

To-day  also,  after  Peter  had  gone,  and  Heidi  had 
breakfasted  with  her  grandfather,  she  set  about  her 
work  ;  but  it  seemed  as  if  she  would  never  finish.  It 
was  such  a  lovely  morning  outdoors,  and  every  moment 
something  happened  to  interrupt  her  in  her  tasks. 
Now  a  sunbeam  came  in  so  gayly  through  the  window, 
and  it  seemed  exactly  as  if  it  said  :  •'  Come  out,  Heidi, 
come  out !  "  So  she  could  no  longer  stay  in  the  house, 
and  she  ran  out.  The  sparkling  sunshine  lay  all  around 
the  hut  and  glistened  on  the  mountains  and  far,  far 
down  in  the  valley,  and  the  ground  there  on  the  cliff 
looked  so  golden  and  dry  that  she  had  to  sit  down  and 
look  around  her  for  a  little  while.  Then  suddenly  she 
remembered  that  the  three-legged  stool  was  still  stand- 


A    GUEST  ON  THE  ALM  229 

ing  in  the  middle  of  the  floor,  and  the  table  had  not 
been  cleared  since  breakfast. 

Then  she  jumped  up  quickly  and  ran  back  into  the 
hut.  But  it  was  not  long  before  it  roared  so  mightily 
through  the  fir  trees  that  Heidi  felt  it  in  every  limb, 
and  she  had  to  go  out  again  and  dance  a  little  with 
them,  when  all  the  branches  above  her  were  rocking 
and  swaying  to  and  fro.  Her  grandfather,  meanwhile, 
had  all  sorts  of  work  to  do  in  the  shop ;  he  came  out 
to  the  door  from  time  to  time  and  looked  smilingly  at 
Heidi  as  she  jumped  about.  He  was  just  stepping 
back  again  when  Heidi  suddenly  screamed  at  the  top 
of  her  voice  :  — 

"  Grandfather,  grandfather !     Come,  come  !  " 

He  hastened  out  again,  almost  afraid  that  something 
had  happened  to  the  child.  Then  he  saw  her  running 
toward  the  cliff  screaming  :  — 

"  They  are  coming,  they  are  coming !  and  the  doctor 
first  of  all !  " 

Heidi  rushed  to  meet  her  old  friend.  He  held  out 
his  hand  to  greet  her..  When  the  child  reached  him 
she  grasped  his  outstretched  arm  affectionately  and 
exclaimed  with  the  greatest  joy  :  — 

"  How  do  you  do,  doctor  t  I  thank  you  many  thou- 
sand times ! " 

"  Good-morning,  Heidi !  But  what  are  you  thanking 
me  for }  "  asked  the  doctor  with  a  pleasant  smile. 

"  Because  I  could  come  home  again  to  my  grand- 
father," explained  the  child. 

The  doctor's  face  lighted  up  as  with  sunshine.     He 


230  HEIDI 

had  not  expected  such  a  reception  in  the  Alps.  In  his 
sense  of  loneliness,  all  the  while  he  was  climbing  the 
mountain,  he  had  been  wrapt  in  thought  and  had  not 
once  noticed  how  beautiful  it  was  around  him,  and  that 
it  was  growing  more  and  more  beautiful.  He  had  sup- 
posed that  the  child  Heidi  would  hardly  remember 
him,  he  had  seen  so  little  of  her  ;  and  as  he  was  coming 
to  give  them  a  disappointment  he  felt  that  he  would  be 
unwelcome  because  he  had  not  brought  the  expected 
friends  with  him. 

Instead  of  this,  Heidi's  eyes  gleamed  with  pure  joy, 
and,  full  of  gratitude  and  love,  she  continued  to  cling  to 
her  good  friend's  arm. 

The  doctor  took  the  child  by  the  hand  with  fatherly 
tenderness.  "  Come,  Heidi,"  he  said  in  a  most  friendly 
way,  "  now  take  me  to  your  grandfather  and  show  me 
where  your  home  is." 

But  Heidi  remained  standing  where  she  was  and 
looked  wonderingly  down  the  mountain. 

"  But  where  are  Klara  and  the  grandmamma  }  "  she 
then  asked. 

"  Well,  I  shall  have  to  tell  you  something  that  will 
pain  you  as  well  as  myself,"  replied  the  doctor.  "  You 
see,  Heidi,  I  have  come  alone.  Klara  has  been  very 
ill  and  was  not  able  to  take  the  journey,  and  so  the 
grandmamma  did  not  come  either.  But  in  the  spring; 
when  the  days  are  warm  and  long  again,  then  they  will 
surely  come." 

Heidi  was  very  much  distressed  ;  she  could  hardly 
realize  that  what  she  had  been  looking  forward  to  as  so 


A    GUEST  ON   THE  ALM  231 

certain  suddenly  became  impossible.  She  stood  motion- 
less for  a  time,  as  if  bewildered  by  the  disappointment. 
The  doctor  stood  silently  in  front  of  her,  and  every- 
thing around  was  still,  except  the  wind  blowing  through 
the  fir  trees  high  above  them.  Then  it  suddenly  oc- 
curred to  Heidi  why  she  had  run  down  the  mountain, 
and  that  the  doctor  was  there.     She  looked  up  at  him. 

There  was  something  sad  in  the  eyes  looking  down 
at  her,  such  as  she  had  never  seen  before ;  he  had  never 
looked  at  her  so  in  Frankfurt.  It  went  to  Heidi's 
heart ;  she  could  not  bear  to  see  any  one  look  sad,  and 
now  least  of  all  the  good  doctor.  It  certainly  must  be 
because  Klara  and  the  grandmamma  could  not  come 
with  him.  She  quickly  sought  some  way  to  console 
him  and  found  it. 

"  Oh,  it  really  won't  be  long  before  spring  will  be 
here  again,  and  then  they  will  surely  come,"  said  Heidi 
comfortingly.  **  With  us  it  never  is  a  great  while ;  and 
then  they  can  stay  much  longer ;  Klara  will  like  that 
much  better.     Now  we  will  go  up  to  my  grandfather." 

Hand  in  hand  with  her  good  friend  she  climbed  up 
to  the  hut.  Heidi  was  so  very  anxious  to  make  the 
doctor  happy  that  she  began  to  assure  him  again  that 
on  the  Aim  it  was  such  a  little  while  before  the  long 
summer  days  would  come  again,  that  it  was  hardly 
noticeable;  and  in  this  way  she  became  comforted 
herself  and  called  up  to  her  grandfather  quite  cheer- 
fully:— 

"  They  did  not  come,  but  it  won't  be  long  before  they 
will  be  here,  too." 


232  HEIDI 

The  doctor  was  no  stranger  to  the  grandfather,  the 
child  had  told  him  so  much  about  her  friend.  The  old 
man  held  out  his  hand  to  his  guest  and  gave  him  a 
hearty  welcome.  Then  they  both  sat  down  on  the 
bench  beside  the  hut,  made  a  little  place  for  Heidi,  and 
the  doctor  motioned  to  her  kindly  to  sit  beside  him. 
Then  he  began  to  relate  how  Herr  Sesemann  had  urged 
him  to  take  the  journey,  and  how  he  himself  had  felt 
that  it  would  be  good  for  him,  since  he  had  not  been 
quite  strong  and  well  for  some  time.  He  then  whis- 
pered in  Heidi's  ear  that  something  which  had  come 
from  Frankfurt  with  him  would  soon  come  up  the 
mountain,  and  that  it  would  give  her  much  greater 
pleasure  than  the  old  doctor  could.  Heidi  was  very 
eager  to  know  what  it  might  be. 

The  grandfather  urged  the  doctor  to  spend  the  beau- 
tiful autumn  days  on  the  Aim,  or  at  least  to  come  up 
every  fine  day,  for  he  could  not  invite  him  to  remain 
up  there,  because  he  had  no  way  of  making  him  com- 
fortable at  night.  But  he  advised  his  guest  not  to  go 
back  as  far  as  Ragatz,  but  to  take  a  room  down  in  Dorfli, 
in  a  simple  but  well-kept  inn  which  he  would  find 
there.  In  that  way  the  doctor  would  be  able  to  come 
up  the  Aim  every  morning,  which  the  uncle  thought 
would  do  him  good.  Moreover,  he  would  be  glad  to 
take  the  gentleman  farther  up  the  mountain,  whenever 
he  liked.  This  plan  very  much  pleased  the  doctor, 
and  he  decided  to  carry  it  out. 

Meanwhile  the  sun  announced  that  it  was  midday ; 
the  wind  had  long  since  ceased,  and  the  fir  trees  were 


A   GUEST  ON  THE  ALM  233 

perfectly  still.  The  air  was  still  mild  and  delicious  for 
such  a  height,  and  felt  refreshingly  cool  around  the 
sunny  bench. 

The  Aim-Uncle  rose  and  went  into  the  hut,  but 
immediately  came  out  again,  bringing  a  table,  which 
he  placed  in  front  of  the  bench. 

"There,  Heidi,  now  bring  out  what  we  need  to  eat," 
he  said.  "  The  gentleman  will  have  to  make  the  best 
of  it,  for  if  our  cooking  is  plain  our  dining-room  is  all 
that  could  be  desired." 

"  I  think  so,  too,"  replied  the  doctor  as  he  gazed 
down  into  the  valley  bathed  in  sunlight ;  "  and  I  accept 
your  invitation,  for  everything  must  taste  good  up 
here." 

Heidi  ran  back  and  forth  like  a  weasel  and  brought 
out  everything  she  could  find  in  the  cupboard,  for  she 
found  it  an  immense  pleasure  to  be  able  to  entertain 
the  doctor.  Meanwhile  the  grandfather  prepared  the 
meal  and  came  out  with  the  steaming  jug  of  milk  and 
the  shining  golden  toasted  cheese.  Then  he  cut  deli- 
cious, transparent  slices  of  rosy  meat,  which  he  had 
dried  up  there  in  the  pure  air.  The  whole  year  through 
the  doctor  had  not  eaten  a  single  meal  which  tasted  so 
good  as  this  dinner  did. 

"Yes,  indeed,  our  Klara  must  come  here,"  he  said  ; 
**  she  would  gain  new  strength,  and  if  she  should  have 
such  an  appetite  as  I  have  to-day,  she  would  become 
plump  and  robust  as  she  never  has  been  in  all  her  life." 

Then  some  one  came  climbing  up  from  below  with  a 
big  package  on  his  back.     When  he  reached  the  hut, 


2U  MEIDl 

he  threw  his  burden  down  on  the  ground  and  drew  in 
long  breaths  of  the  fresh  mountain  air. 

"Ah,  here  is  what  came  with  me  from  Frankfurt," 
said  the  doctor,  rising  ;  and  drawing  Heidi  after  him,  he 
went  to  the  package  and  began  to  undo  it.  After  the 
first  heavy  wrapping  was  removed,  he  said :  — 

"  There,  child,  now  open  it  yourself  and  take  out 
your  treasures." 

Heidi  did  so,  and  when  everything  rolled  out  together 
her  eyes  grew  big  with  astonishment  as  she  gazed  at 
the  things.  When  the  doctor  stepped  back  again  and 
lifted  the  cover  of  the  big  box,  saying  to  Heidi,  "  See 
what  the  grandmother  has  for  her  coffee,"  then  she 
screamed  with  delight :  — 

"  Oh  !  oh  !  Now  at  last  the  grandmother  can  have 
some  nice  cakes  to  eat !  " 

She  danced  around  the  box,  and  was  anxious  to  put 
everything  together  immediately,  and  hasten  down  to 
the  grandmother's.  But  her  grandfather  promised  her 
that  toward  evening  they  would  go  down  with  the  doc- 
tor and  take  the  things  with  them.  Then  Heidi  found 
the  nice  bag  of  tobacco  and  brought  it  quickly  to  her 
grandfather.  It  pleased  him  very  much ;  he  immedi- 
ately filled  his  pipe  with  it,  and  the  two  men  then  sat 
on  the  bench,  talking  about  all  sorts  of  things,  and  puff- 
ing out  great  clouds  of  smoke,  while  Heidi  ran  back  and 
forth  from  one  of  her  treasures  to  another. 

Suddenly  she  came  back  to  the  bench,  stood  in  front 
of  her  guest,  and  as  soon  as  there  was  a  pause  in  the 
conversation  she  said  very  decidedly  :  — 


A    GUEST  OAT   THE  ALM  235 

"  No,  nothing  has  given  me  any  more  pleasure  than 
the  old  doctor  has." 

The  two  men  had  to  laugh  a  little,  and  the  doctor 
said  he  would  n't  have  thought  it. 

When  the  sun  went  down  behind  the  mountains 
the  guest  rOse  to  take  his  way  back  to  Dorfli  and  to 
find  lodgings  there.  The  grandfather  put  the  box  of 
cakes,  the  big  sausage,  and  the  shawl  under  his  arm  ; 
the  doctor  took  Heidi  by  the  hand,  and  they  went  down 
the  mountain  to  goatherd  Peter's  hut.  Here  Heidi 
had  to  leave  them  ;  she  was  to  wait  inside  with  the 
grandmother  until  her  grandfather  should  come  for 
her,  after  accompanying  his  guest  down  to  Dorfii. 

When  the  doctor,  as  he  said  good-night,  offered  his 
hand  to  Heidi,  she  asked  :  — 

"Would  you  like  to  go  up  to  the  pasture  with  the 
goats  to-morrow .?  " 

That  was  the  loveliest  spot  she  knew. 

"To  be  sure,  Heidi,"  he  replied,  "we  will  go  to- 
gether." 

Then  the  men  continued  their  way,  and  Heidi  went 
into  the  grandmother's  hut.  First  she  dragged  in  the 
box  of  cakes  with  difficulty  ;  then  she  had  to  go  out 
again-  to  bring  in  the  sausage,  for  her  grandfather  had 
laid  everything  down  in  front  of  the  door ;  then  she 
had  to  go  out  once  more  to  get  the  big  shawl.  She 
brought  them  all  as  close  to  the  grandmother  as  possi- 
ble, so  that  she  might  touch  them  and  know  what  they 
were.    She  laid  the  shawl  in  her  lap. 

"They  are  all  from  Frankfurt,  from  Klara  and  her 


236  HEIDI 

grandmamma  !  "  she  exclaimed.  The  amazed  Brigitte 
was  so  affected  by  her  surprise  that  she  stood  motion- 
less, watching  Heidi  as  she,  with  the  greatest  difficulty, 
dragged  in  the  heavy  articles  and  spread  out  everything 
before  her  and  the  highly  astonished  grandmother. 

"  Surely,  grandmother,  you  are  terribly  pleased  with 
the  cakes,  aren't  you.-*  Just  see  how  soft  they  are!" 
Heidi  exclaimed  again  and  again,  and  the  grandmother 
replied  assuringly :  — 

"  Yes,  yes,  indeed,  Heidi ;  what  good  people  they 
are !  "  Then  she  would  stroke  the  soft,  warm  shawl 
with  her  hand  and  say  :  — 

"  But  this  is  something  splendid  for  the  cold  winter ! 
I  never  dreamed  I  should  ever  have  anything  so  mag- 
nificent in  my  life." 

Heidi  was  very  much  surprised  that  the  grandmother 
should  be  more  delighted  with  the  gray  shawl  than 
with  the  cakes.  Brigitte  continued  standing  before  the 
sausage  as  it  lay  on  the  table,  and  gazed  at  it  almost 
with  veneration.  In  all  her  life  she  had  never  seen 
such  a  giant  sausage,  and  she  was  going  to  possess  it, 
and  even  cut  it ;  she  could  not  believe  it  possible.  She 
shook  her  head  and  said  timidly  :  — 

"We  must  first  ask  the  uncle  what  it  is  meant  "for." 

But  Heidi  said  very  decidedly  :  — 

"  It  is  meant  to  eat,  and  for  nothing  else." 

Then  Peter  came  stumbling  in. 

"  The  Aim-Uncle  is  coming  just  behind  me ;  Heidi 
must "  —  He  could  go  no  further.  His  eyes  fell  on 
the  table  where  the  sausage  lay,  and  the  sight  of  it  so 


A    GUEST  ON  THE  ALM  237 

overpowered  him  that  he  could  not  speak  another  word. 
But  Heidi  had  already  noticed  who  was  coming,  and 
hastened  to  give  her  hand  to  the  grandmother.  The 
Aim-Uncle  never  went  by  the  hut  now  without  step- 
ping in  to  speak  to  the  grandmother,  and  she  was 
always  delighted  to  hear  his  step,  for  he  was  sure  to 
have  an  encouraging  word  for  her ;  but  to-day  it  was 
late  for  Heidi,  who  was  out  every  morning  with  the 
sun.  Her  grandfather  said,  "  The  child  must  have 
her  sleep,"  and  was  firm.  So  he  merely  called  out  a 
good-night  through  the  open  door  to  the  grandmother, 
took  Heidi's  hand  as  she  ran  to  meet  him,  and  the  two 
made  their  way  beneath  the  twinkling  stars  back  to 
their  peaceful  hut. 


CHAPTER    III 

CONSOLATION 

Early  the  next  morning  the  doctor  climbed  the 
mountain  from  Dorfli  in  company  with  Peter  and  his 
goats.  In  a  friendly  spirit  he  tried  several  times  to 
enter  into  conversation  with  the  goat  boy,  but  he  did 
not  succeed  in  getting  more  than  the  briefest  answers 
to  his  leading  questions.  Peter  was  not  so  easily  led 
into  conversation.  So  the  whole  company  traveled  in 
silence  up  to  the  Aim  hut,  where  Heidi  already  stood 
waiting  with  her  two  goats,  all  three  as  lively  and  glad 
as  the  early  sunshine  on  the  heights. 

"  Coming  too  .''  "  asked  Peter,  for  he  said  this  every 
morning  either  as  a  question  or  a  summons. 

"  To  be  sure,  of  course,  if  the  doctor  will  come  with 
us,"  replied  Heidi. 

Peter  looked  a  little  askance  at  the  gentleman. 

Then  the  grandfather  came  out,  bringing  the  dinner 
bag  in  his  hand.  He  first  greeted  the  doctor  with  great 
respect,  then  went  to  Peter  and  hung  the  bag  over  his 
shoulder. 

It  was  heavier  than  usual,  for  the  uncle  had  put  in  a 
good  piece  of  the  dried  meat ;  he  thought  possibly  the 
doctor  might  like  it  up  in  the  pasture,  and  he  would 
enjoy  his  dinner  there  at  the  same  time  with  the  chil- 

238 


CONSOLA  TION  239 

dren.  Peter's  mouth  spread  almost  from  one  ear  to 
the  other  with  a  grin  of  satisfaction,  for  he  suspected 
that  there  was  something  unusual  inside. 

The  journey  up  the  mountain  was  now  begun.  Heidi 
was  completely  surrounded  by  the  goats ;  each  one 
wanted  to  be  next  her,  and  they  kept  pushing  one 
another  to  one  side.  So  she  remained  for  some  time 
in  the  midst  of  the  flock,  struggling  with  them.  Then 
she  stood  still  and  said  :  — 

"  Now  please  run  away  and  don't  keep  coming  back 
and  pushing  and  jostling  me ;  I  must  go  with  the  doc- 
tor a  little  while  now." 

Then  she  patted  Schneehopli  gently  on  the  back, 
for  she  still  kept  close  to  her  side,  and  bade  her 
especially  to  be  very  obedient.  Then  she  made  her 
way  out  of  the  flock  and  ran  to  the  side  of  the  doctor, 
who  seized  her  hand  at  once  and  held  it  fast.  He  had 
no  difficulty  in  getting  Heidi  to  talk  ;  she  immediately 
began  and  had  so  much  to  tell  him  about  the  goats  and 
their  remarkable  doings,  and  about  the  flowers  up  there 
and  the  rocks  and  the  birds,  that  before  they  knew  it 
they  had  reached  the  pasture. 

As  they  climbed  the  mountain,  Peter  had  frequently 
cast  at  the  doctor  sidelong  glances,  which  might  really 
have  terrified  him,  but  fortunately  he  did  not  see 
them. 

When  they  reached  the  end  of  their  journey,  Heidi 
took  her  kind  friend  to  the  loveliest  spot  of  all,  where 
she  always  went,  sat  down  on  the  ground,  and  looked 
around  ;  this  was  her  favorite  place. 


240  HEIDI 

The  doctor  dropped  down  beside  her  on  the  sunny 
pasture  ground.  Round  about  the  golden  autumn  sun 
shone  over  the  peaks  and  the  distant  green  valley. 
Everywhere  from  the  mountains  below  came  the  sound 
of  the  goat  bells,  so  lovely  and  delightful,  as  if  announc- 
ing sweet  peace  far  and  wide.  The  golden  sunbeams 
flashed  sparkling  and  glistening  here  and  there  on  the 
great  snow  fields  above,  and  the  gray  Falkniss  lifted  its 
towers  of  rock  in  lofty  majesty  far  up  into  the  deep 
blue  sky.  The  morning  breeze  blew  gently  and  deli- 
ciously  over  the  mountain  and  softly  stirred  the  last 
bluebells,  still  remaining  from  the  great  multitude  of 
the  summer,  and  cheerfully  nodding  their  little  heads 
in  the  warm  sunshine.  The  great  robber-bird  flew 
around  in  wide  circles  above,  but  to-day  he  did  not 
scream ;  with  outspread  wings  he  floated  peacefully 
through  the  blue  and  took  his  ease. 

Heidi  gazed  first  one  way  and  then  another.  The 
gay  nodding  flowers,  the  blue  sky,  the  merry  sunshine, 
the  contented  bird  in  the  air,  all  were  so  beautiful,  so 
beautiful !  Heidi's  eyes  sparkled  with  delight.  She 
looked  at  her  friend  to  see  whether  he,  too,  understood 
how  beautiful  it  was.  Until  now  the  doctor  had  been 
looking  around  him  silently  and  wrapt  in  thought.  As 
he  met  the  child's  beaming  eyes  he  said  :  — 

**  Yes,  Heidi,  it  is  beautiful  here  ;  but  what  do  you 
think .''  If  you  brought  a  sad  heart,  how  could  you 
make  it  well,  so  that  you  could  enjoy  all  this  beauty } " 

"  Oh,  oh  !  "  exclaimed  Heidi  quite  gayly  ;  "nobody 
ever  has  a  sad  heart  here,  —  only  in  Frankfurt." 


CONSOLATION  241 

A  smile  passed  over  the  doctor's  face,  but  it  quickly 
vanished.     Then  he  added  :  — 

"And  supposing  some  one  should  come  and  bring 
all  his  sorrow  with  him  up  here  from  Frankfurt,  Heidi ;  ' 
do  you  know  of  anything  that  could  help  him  then  ?  " 

"  He  must  tell  everything  to  the  dear  Lord,  if  he 
does  not  know  what  to  do,"  said  Heidi  with  perfect 
assurance. 

*'  Yes,  that  is  really  a  good  thought,  child,"  observed 
the  doctor.  **  But  if  what  makes  you  so  very  sad  and 
miserable  comes  from  Him,  what  can  you  say  to  the 
dear  Lord } " 

Heidi  had  to  think  what  ought  to  be  done  in  such  a 
case ;  but  she  was  very  certain  that  one  could  obtain 
help  from  the  dear  Lord  for  every  sorrow.  She  sought 
a  reply  from  her  own  experience. 

"Then  you  must  wait,"  she  said  after  a  while  with 
assurance,  "  and  keep  thinking  :  *  Surely  now  the  dear 
Lord  knows  some  joy  which  is  to  come  out  of  this  by 
and  by,  so  I  must  be  still  for  a  little  and  not  run  away 
from  Him.'  Then  all  at  once  it  will  happen  so  that  you 
will  see  quite  clearly  that  the  dear  Lord  had  nothing  but 
good  in  His  mind  all  the  time ;  but  because  you  could 
not  see  it  so  at  first,  and  only  had  the  terrible  sorrow 
all  the  time  before  you,  you  thought  it  would  always 
remain  so." 

"  That  is  a  beautiful  faith,  and  you  must  hold  it  fast, 
Heidi,"  said  the  doctor.  For  some  time  he  gazed 
silently  at  the  mighty  mountains  of  rock  and  down  into 
the  green  sunlit  valley  ;  then  he  continued :  — 


242  HEIDI 

"  You  see,  Heidi,  you  might  sit  here  with  a  great 
shade  over  your  eyes,  so  that  you  could  not  take  in 
the  beauty  all  about.  Then  indeed  would  your  heart 
be  sad,  doubly  sad,  where  it  is  so  beautiful.  Can  you 
understand  that  ?  " 

A  pain  shot  through  Heidi's  happy  heart.  The  great 
shade  over  the  eyes  reminded  her  of  the  grandmother, 
who  could  never  again  see  the  bright  sun  and  all  the 
beauty  up  there.  To  Heidi  it  was  a  grief  that  was 
always  revived  as  often  as  the  fact  occurred  to  her. 
She  remained  perfectly  silent  for  some  time,  for  the 
pain  had  so  broken  into  the  midst  of  her  joy.  Then  she 
said  earnestly :  — 

"Yes,  indeed,  I  can  understand  that.  But  I  know 
something;  then  you  must  say  the  grandmother's 
hymns,  and  they  will  give  you  a  little  light,  and  per- 
haps so  much  light  that  you  will  become  quite  happy. 
The  grandmother  said  so." 

"  What  hymns,  Heidi .?  "  asked  the  doctor. 

"  I  know  only  the  one  about  the  sun  and  the  beauti- 
ful garden,  and  the  verses  the  grandmother  likes  from 
the  other  long  one,  for  I  always  have  to  read  it  three 
times,"  replied  Heidi. 

•'  Just  tell  me  these  verses,  I  should  like  to  hear 
them."  And  the  doctor  sat  up  straight  at  once  to 
listen  attentively. 

Heidi  folded  her  hands  and  collected  her  thoughts 
for  a  little. 

"  Shall  I  begin  where  the  grandmother  says  that  trust 
returns  to  one's  heart  ?  " 


CONSOLA IVOAT  243 

The  doctor  nodded  assent. 
Then  Heidi  began  :  — 

•'  Ok,  trust  His  love  to  guide  thee. 
He  is  a  Prince  so  wise 
That  what  His  hands  provide  thee 
Is  wondrous  in  thine  eyes. 
And  He,  if  He  be  willing. 
May  bring  the  work  about 
And  thus  thy  hopes  fulfilling 
Dispel  thy  fear  and  doubt. 

It  may  be  for  a  season 
He  will  no  comfort  show. 
And  for  some  hidden  reason 
His  light  ivill  not  bestow. 
As  if  no  m,ore  He  heeded 
What  sorrow  was  thy  share, 
Or  what  relief  thou  needed 
In  all  thy  deep  despair. 

But  if  thy  sure  faith  stays  thee 
When  thou  art  most  perplext, 
He  will  appear  and  raise  thee 
What,  time  thou  least  expect  ''si. 
He  will  remove  the  burden 
That  presses  thy  heart  down. 
And  thou  shall  have  the  guerdon 
And  thou  shalt  wear  the  crown.''''* 

Heidi  stopped  suddenly,  for  she  was  not  sure  that 
the  doctor  was  still  listening.  He  had  laid  his  hand 
over  his  eyes  and  was  sitting  motionless.  She  thought 
perhaps  he  had  fallen  asleep ;  so  if  he  should  wake  up 
and  care  to  hear  more  verses  she  would  repeat  them  to 

*  Tr.  by  N.  H.  D. 


244 


HEIDI 


him.  Everything  was  still.  The  doctor  said  nothing, 
but  he  was  not  asleep.  He  had  been  carried  back  to 
days  of  long  ago.  He  stood  as  a  little  boy  beside  his 
dear  mother's  chair ;  she  had  placed  her  arm  around 
his  neck  and  was  repeating  the  hymn  which  Heidi  had 


just  repeated,  and  which  he  had  not  heard  for  so  long. 
Now  he  heard  his  mother's  voice  again  and  saw  her 
gentle  eyes  resting  on  him  so  lovingly,  and  when  the 
words  of  the  hymn  had  ceased,  the  kind  voice  seemed 
to  be  speaking  still  other  words  to  him ;  he  must  have 
enjoyed  listening  to  them  and  have  gone  far  back  in 
his  thoughts,  for  he  sat  there  for  a  long  while,  silent 


CONSOLA  TION  245 

and  motionless,  with  his  face  buried  in  his  hands. 
When  he  finally  rose  he  noticed  that  Heidi  was  looking 
at  him  in  amazement.  He  took  the  child's  hand  in 
his. 

"  Heidi,  your  hymn  was  beautiful,"  he  said ;  and  his 
voice  sounded  more  cheerful  than  it  had  been  before. 
"We  will  come  up  here  another  day,  and  you  shall 
repeat  it  to  me  once  more." 

During  all  this  time  Peter  was  having  enough  to  do 
in  giving  vent  to  his  vexation.  Heidi  had  not  been  with 
him  up  to  the  pasture  for  several  days,  and  now  that 
she  had  finally  come  this  old  gentleman  sat  beside  her 
the  whole  time,  and  Peter  could  not  come  near  her  at 
all.  This  greatly  annoyed  him.  He  took  his  place  at 
a  distance  higher  up,  where  the  unsuspecting  gentleman 
could  not  see  him,  and  here  he  first  doubled  up  one  fist 
and  shook  it,  and  after  a  while  he  doubled  up  both  fists, 
and  the  longer  Heidi  remained  sitting  beside  the  doc- 
tor, the  more  frantically  Peter  doubled  up  his  fists  and 
the  higher  and  more  threateningly  he  raised  •  them  in 
the  air  behind  the  gentleman's  back. 

Meanwhile  the  sun  had  reached  the  point  where  it 
stands  when  it  is  time  for  the  midday  meal ;  this  Peter 
knew  well  enough.  Suddenly  he  screamed  down  with 
all  his  might  to  the  others :  — 

"We  must  have  something  to  eat  ! " 

Heidi  rose  and  was  going  to  get  the  bag,  so  that  the 
doctor  could  have  his  dinner  just  where  he  was  sitting. 
But  he  said  he  was  not  hungry ;  he  wanted  nothing 
but  a  glass  of  milk  to  drink,  and  then  he  would  like  to 


\ 


246  HEIDI 

go  about  a  little  more  on  the  mountain  and  climb  some- 
what higher.  Then  Heidi  discovered  that  she  was  not 
hungry  either,  and  that  she  cared  for  only  a  glass  of 
milk,  after  which  she  would  like  to  take  the  doctor  to 
the  big  moss-covered  rock,  high  up,  where  Distelfinck 
had  almost  jumped  over,  and  where  all  the  spicy  herbs 
grew.  She  ran  to  Peter  and  explained  it  all  to  him, 
how  he  must  first  take  a  bowl  of  milk  from  Schwanli 
for  the  doctor  and  another  for  herself.  At  first  Peter 
looked  at  •  Heidi  for  some  time  in  amazement,  then  he 
asked  :  — 

"  Who  is  to  have  what  is  in  the  bag  .-*  " 

"  You  may  have  it,  but  you  must  get  the  milk  first 
and  be  quick  about  it,"  was  Heidi's  reply. 

Peter  had  never  done  anything  in  his  life  so  quickly 
as  he  accomplished  this  task,  for  he  saw  the  bag  con- 
stantly before  him,  and  he  did  not  know  how  its  con- 
tents looked,  and  yet  it  belonged  to'him.  As  soon  as 
the  two  others  had  drunk  their  milk,  Peter  opened  the 
bag  and  took  a  look  into  it.  When  he  saw  the  wonder- 
ful piece  of  meat  his  whole  body  trembled  with  delight, 
and  he  looked  into  the  bag  again  to  make  sure  that  it 
was  really  true.  Then  he  put  his  hand  in  to  take  out 
the  welcome  gift  and  enjoy  it.  But  suddenly  he  put 
his  hand  back,  as  if  he  dared  not  take  it.  He  recalled 
how  he  had  stood  there  behind  the  doctor  and  shaken 
his  fists  at  him,  and  now  the  same  gentleman  had  given 
him  all  his  splendid  dinner.  Then  Peter  was  sorry  for 
what  he  had  done,  for  it  seemed  as  if  it  hindered  him 
from  taking  his  fine  present  and  enjoying  it.     Suddenly 


CONSOLA  TION  247 

he  jumped  up  and  ran  back  to  the  place  where  he  had 
been  standing,  stretched  both  his  hands  wide  open  up 
in  the  air,  as  a  sign  that  his  clinched  fists  meant 
nothing,  and  so  remained  standing  there  for  some  time 
until  he  felt  that  his  deed  was  atoned  for.  Then  he 
took  great  leaps  back  to  the  bag  ;  for  now  that  his  con- 
science was  clear  he  could  eat  his  unusually  nice  dinner 
with  perfect  enjoyment. 

The  doctor  and  Heidi  wandered  about  together  for  a 
long  while  and  enjoyed  each  other's  company.  Then 
the  doctor  found  that  it  was  time  for  him  to  go  back, 
and  thought  that  the  child  would  like  to  stay  a  little 
longer  with  her  goats.  But  Heidi  had  no  such  idea, 
for  then  the  doctor  would  have  to  go  alone  down 
the  whole  length  of  the  mountain.  She  would  walk 
with  him  as  far  as  her  grandfather's  hut,  and  even  far- 
ther. She  went  hand  in  hand  with  her  good  friend, 
and  had  all  the  way  a  great  deal  to  tell  him  and  show 
him ;  she  wanted  him  to  see  all  the  places  where  the 
goats  liked  best  to  feed,  and  where  grew  the  greatest 
number  of  bright  yellow  wild  roses  and  red  centauries 
and  other  flowers  to  be  found  in  the  summer  time. 
She  knew  them  all,  for  her  grandfather  had  taught  her 
their  names. 

But  at  last  the  doctor  said  he  must  go.  They  bade 
each  other  good-night,  and  as  he  went  down  the  moun- 
tain he  turned  every  little  while  to  look  back,  and  saw 
Heidi  still  standing  in  the  same  place,  gazing  after  him 
and  waving  her  hand  to  him.  Just  so  had  his  own  dear 
little  daughter  done  when  he  went  away  from  his  house. 


\ 


248  HEIDI 

It  was  a  clear  sunny  autumn  month.  Every  morning 
the  doctor  came  up  on  the  mountain,  and  then  there 
was  a  delightful  excursion  farther  up.  Often  he  went 
off  with  the  Aim-Uncle  far  up  into  the  craggy  moun- 
tains, where  the  old  weather-beaten  fir  trees  were; 
the  great  robber-bird  must  have  had  his  nest  near  by, 
for  he  often  whizzed  past,  whirring  and  croaking,  close 
to  the  heads  of  the  two  men. 

The  doctor  took  great  pleasure  in  his  companion's 
society,  and  was  more  and  more  amazed  to  see  how 
familiar  the  uncle  was  with  all  the  plants  around  on 
his  mountain,  and  how  well  he  knew  what  they  were 
good  for,  and  how  many  valuable  and  good  things  he 
discovered  everywhere  up  there,  in  the  pitchy  fir  trees 
and  the  sombre  pines  with  their  fragrant  needles,  in 
the  crinkled  moss,  sprouting  out  between  the  roots  of 
the  old  trees,  and  in  all  the  delicate  little  plants  and 
modest  flowers,  still  growing  quite  high  up  in  the  nour- 
ishing mountain  soil. 

The  old  man  was  equally  familiar  with  the  life  and 
habits  of  all  the  animals  up  there,  both  great  and  small, 
and  he  had  very  amusing  things  to  tell  the  doctor  about 
the  ways  of  these  little  creatures  living  in  holes  in  the 
rocks,  caves,  and  even  the  branches  of  the  lofty  fir 
trees. 

The  doctor  did  not  know  where  the  time  went  on 
these  excursions,  and  often  at  evening  when  he  shook 
the  uncle's  hand  heartily  at  parting,  he  would  say :  — 

"  My  good  friend,  I  never  go  away  from  you  without 
learning  something  new." 


CONSOLATION  249 

But  on  many  days,  and  usually  on  the  finest,  the 
doctor  chose  to  go  with  Heidi,  Then  the  two  would 
often  sit  together  on  the  lovely  cliff  where  they  sat  the 
first  day,  and  Heidi  had  to  repeat  her  hymns  and  tell 
the  doctor  what  she  knew.  And  Peter  would  often  sit 
behind  them  in  his  place,  but  he  was  now  quite  peace- 
able and  no  longer  shook  his  fists  at  them. 

Thus  the  lovely  month  of  September  came  to  an 
end.  Then  one  morning  the  doctor  came,  looking  less 
happy  than  usual.  He  said  it  was  his  last  day,  and  he 
must  go  back  to  Frankfurt ;  this  grieved  him  very 
much,  for  he  had  become  as  fond  of  the  mountain  as  if 
it  were  his  own  home.  This  news  pained  the  Aim-Uncle 
also,  for  he  had  particularly  enjoyed  the  doctor's  com- 
pany, and  Heidi  had  become  so  accustomed  to  see  her 
beloved  friend  every  day  that  she  could  not  understand 
that  the  pleasure  was  now  suddenly  coming  to  an  end. 
She  looked  up  at  him  inquiringly  and  quite  amazed. 
But  it  was  really  so.  The  doctor  bade  her  grandfather 
farewell  and  then  asked  if  Heidi  would  go  with  him  a 
little  way.  With  her  hand  in  his  she  went  down  the 
mountain,  but  she  could  not  fully  realize  that  he  was 
really  going  away. 

After  a  vy^hile  the  doctor  stood  still  and  said  that  Heidi 
had  come  far  enough,  and  she  must  turn  back.  He 
pressed  his  hand  tenderly  over  the  child's  curly  hair  two 
or  three  times  and  said  :  — 

"  Now  I  must  go,  Heidi !  If  only  I  could  take  you 
to  Frankfurt  and  could  keep  you  with  me  ! " 

All  Frankfurt  suddenly  rose  before  Heidi's  eyes,  its 


250  HEIDI 

many,  many  houses  and  stony  streets,  as  well  as  Fraulein 
Rottenmeier  and  Tinette,  and  she  answered  somewhat 
timidly  :  — 

"  I  would  rather  have  you  come  back  to  us 
again." 

"  Well,  yes,  perhaps  it  would  be  Better,  so  good-bye, 
Heidi,"  said  the  doctor  kindly,  holding  out  his  hand  to 
her.  Heidi  laid  hers  in  it  and  looked  up  at  her  depart- 
ing friend.  The  kind  eyes  which  looked  down  at  her 
filled  with  tears.  Then  the  doctor  turned  quickly  and 
hastened  down  the  mountain. 

Heidi  remained  standing  and  did  not  stir.  The 
beloved  eyes  and  the  tears  which  she  saw  in  them  went 
straight  to  her  heart.  Suddenly  she  burst  into  loud 
weeping  and  rushed  with  all  her  might  after  the  fast 
disappearing  doctor  and  called  between  her  sobs  as 
loudly  as  she  could  :  — 

"  Doctor !     Doctor  ! " 

He  turned  around  and  stood  still. 

The  child  had  now  reached  him.  The  tears  streamed 
down  her  cheeks  while  she  sobbed  out  :  — 

"  I  will  truly  go  with  you  to  Frankfurt  now,  and  I 
will  stay  with  you  as  long  as  you  like,  but  I  must  hurry 
back  to  tell  my  grandfather." 

The  doctor  soothingly  caressed  the  excited  child. 

"  No,  my  dear  Heidi,"  he  said  in  the  kindest  tone, 
"  not  now ;  you  must  stay  longer  under  the  fir  trees, 
for  you  might  be  sick  again  if  you  went  with  me.  But 
come,  I  want  to  ask  you  something  :  if  I  am  ever  sick 
and  alone,  will  you  come  to  me  then  and  stay  with  me  ? 


CONS  OLA  TION  251 

Can  I  think  that  then  some  one  will  care  for  me  and 
love  me  ? " 

"  Yes,  yes ;  then  I  will  surely  come  to  you,  the  very 
same  day ;  and  I  love  you  almost  as  well  as  my  grand- 
father," said  Heidi  decidedly,  still  sobbing. 

Then  the  doctor  pressed  her  hand  once  more  and 
hurried  on  his  way.  But  Heidi  remained  standing  in 
the  same  spot,  waving  her  hand  again  and  again,  until 
the  form  of  her  friend,  as  he  hastened  away,  was  a  mere 
speck  in  the  distance.  When  he  turned  round  for  the 
last  time  and  looked  back  at  Heidi,  waving  her  hand, 
and  the  sunny  mountain,  he  said  softly  to  himself :  — 

"It  is  good  to  be  on  the  mountain  ;  body  and  soul  get 
well  there,  and  life  becomes  happy  again." 


CHAPTER    IV 

THE    WINTER    IN   DORFLI 

Around  the  Aim  hut  the  snow  lay  so  deep  that  it 
looked  as  if  the  windows  were  on  a  level  with  the 
ground,  for  not  a  bit  of  the  wall  was  to  be  seen  below 
them ;  moreover,  the  house  door  had  completely  disap- 
peared. If  the  Aim-Uncle  had  been  up  there  he  would 
have  had  to  do  the  same  thing  that  Peter  did  every 
day.  Every  morning  he  had  to  jump  out  of  the  win- 
dow, and  if  everything  was  not  frozen  he  sank  so  deep 
in  the  soft  snow  that  had  fallen  during  the  night  that 
he  had  to  push  and  struggle  and  kick  in  every  direction 
with  his  hands  and  feet  and  head,  until  he  had  worked 
his  way  out.  Then  his  mother  would  hand  him  the 
big  broom  from  the  window,  and  with  this  Peter  would 
push  and  shove  the  snow  before  him  until  he  reached 
the  door.  Then  he  had  great  trouble,  for  there  all  the 
snow  had  to  be  dug  away,  or  if  it  was  still  soft  when 
the  door  opened,  the  whole  great  mass  would  fall  into 
the  kitchen,  or  else  it  froze  up,  and  then  they  were 
completely  walled  in,  for  they  could  not  make  their  way 
through  these  rock-like  heaps  of  ice,  and  Peter  was  the 
only  one  who  could  slip  through  the  little  window. 

Freezing   weather   brought    many   conveniences   to 

Peter,     If  he  was  going  down  to  Dorfii,  all  he  had  to 

252 


THE   WINTER  IN  DORFLI  253 

do  was  to  open  the  window,  crawl  through  and  get  out 
on  the  smooth  surface  of  the  firm  snow  field.  Then  his 
mother  would  push  his  little  sled  through  the  window 
after  him,  and  Peter  had  only  to  seat  himself  on  it  and 
slide  wherever  he  liked  ;  in  any  case  he  went  down,  for 
the  whole  Aim  all  about  was  one  great  unbroken 
slope. 

The  uncle  wa;s  not  on  the  Aim  that  winter ;  he  had 
kept  his  word.  As  soon  as  the  first  snow  fell  he  had 
shut  up  the  hut  and  shed  and  had  gone  down  to  Dorfli 
with  Heidi  and  the  goats.  Near  the  church  and  the 
parsonage  stood  a  spacious  building,  which  in  old  times 
had  been  a  great  mansion.  This  could  still  be  seen  in 
many  places,  although  now  the  building  was  more  or 
less  in  ruins.  A  brave  warrior  had  once  lived  in  it ;  he 
had  gone  to  the  Spanish  wars  and  had  performed  many 
brave  deeds  and  gained  great  wealth.  Then  he  had 
come  home  to  Dorfli,  and  with  his  gains  built  a  splendid 
house  in  which  he  intended  to  live.  But  he  did  not  stay 
long,  it  was  so  tedious  to  him,  for  he  had  lived  too 
much  in  the  noisy  world  to  be  able  to  endure  the  quiet 
Dorfli.  He  went  away  again  and  never  came  back. 
After  many,  many  years  when  it  was  known  that  he 
was  really  dead,  a  distant  relative  down  in  the  valley 
took  the  house,  but  it  was  already  tumbling  to  pieces, 
and  the  new  owner  did  not  care  to  build  it  up  again. 
So  poor  people  who  had  to  pay  little  for  it  came  into 
the  house,  and  if  a  part  of  the  building  fell,  they  let 
it  lie. 

Since  that  time  many  years  had  passed  by.   When  the 


254  HEIDI 

uncle  came  back  with  the  young  boy  Tobias  he  took 
the  ruined  house  and  lived  in  it.  Since  then  it  had 
stood  empty  most  of  the  time,  for  no  one  without  skill 
to  stop  the  work  of  destruction  to  some  extent  and  to 
fill  up  and  mend  the  holes  and  gaps  could  stay  there. 
The  winter  in  Dorfli  was  long  and  cold.  The  wind 
blew  in  from  every  side  through  the  rooms,  so  that  the 
lights  were  blown  out  and  the  poor  people  shook  with 
the  cold.  But  the  uncle  knew  how  to  manage.  As 
soon  as  he  had  made  up  his  mind  to  spend  the  winter 
in  Dorfli,  he  took  the  old  house  again,  and  often  during 
the  autumn  came  down  to  mend  and  repair  it  as  he 
liked.  About  the  middle  of  October  he  brought  Heidi 
down. 

Entering  the  house  from  the  rear,  one  came  at  once 
into  an  open  room,  the  entire  wall  on  one  side  of  which, 
and  half  on  the  other,  had  fallen  in.  Above  this  an 
arched  window  was  still  to  be  seen,  but  the  glass  had 
long  been  out  of  it,  and  thick  ivy  crept  around  it  and 
high  up  on  the  roof,  which  was,  for  the  most  part,  still 
solid.  It  was  beautifully  arched,  and  one  could  easily 
see  that  it  had  been  a  chapel.  There  being  no  door, 
one  came  directly  into  a  large  hall,  and  here  in  places 
in  the  floor  were  still  some  handsome  tiles  between 
which  the  grass  grew  thick.  The  walls  were  half  gone, 
and  great  pieces  of  the  roof  had  given  way ;  had  it 
not  been  for  two  heavy  pillars,  the  whole  roof  would 
have  been  gone ;  as  it  was,  it  looked  as  if  it  might  at 
any  moment  fall  on  the  heads  of  those  standing  under- 
neath. 


THE   WINTER  IN  DORFLI  255 

Here  the  uncle  had  put  up  a  partition  of  boards  and 
had  covered  the  floor  thickly  with  hay,  for  in  this  old 
hall  the  goats  were  to  be  housed. 

Then  there  were  all  sorts  of  passageways,  all  half 
uncovered,  so  that  the  sky  could  be  seen  through,  and 
sometimes  the  meadows  and  the  road  outside.  But  in 
the  front  where  the  heavy  oaken  door  still  hung  firmly 
on  its  hinges,  one  came  to  a  large  spacious  room  which 
was  still  in  good  condition.  The  four  walls  were  all 
standing,  the  dark  wood  wainscotings  showed  not  a 
break,  and  in  one  corner  stood  a  huge  stove,  reaching 
almost  to  the  ceiling,  and  on  the  white  tiles  were  big 
blue  pictures.  There  were  old  castles  on  them,  with  tall 
trees  all  around,  and  underneath  a  huntsman  passing 
with  his  dogs.  There  was  also  a  peaceful  lake,  under 
wide-spreading  oaks,  with  a  fisherman  standing  by  it 
and  holding  his  rod  far  out  over  the  water.  There  was 
a  seat  all  around  the  stove  so  that  one  could  sit  down 
and  study  the  pictures.  This  at  once  took  Heidi's 
fancy.  As  soon  as  she  came  into  the  room  with  her 
grandfather,  she  ran  to  the  stove,  sat  down  on  the 
bench,  and  began  to  look  at  the  pictures.  But  as  she 
moved  along  on  the  seat  and  came  behind  the  stove, 
something  new  occupied  her  whole  attention;  in  the 
quite  large  space  between  the  stove  and  the  wall  four 
boards  were  placed,  like  a  bin  for  apples.  But  there 
were  no  apples  in  it ;  there  actually  lay  Heidi's  bed 
exactly  as  it  had  been  upon  the  Aim ;  a  thick  bed  of 
hay,  with  the  linen  sheet  and  the  bag  for  a  coverlet. 
Heidi  shouted :  — 


256  HEIDI 

"  Oh,  grandfather,  here  is  my  bedroom !  Oh,  how 
lovely  !     But  where  will  you  sleep  ?  " 

"  Your  bedroom  must  be  near  the  stove,  so  that  you 
won't  freeze,"  said  her  grandfather.  "  You  may  see 
mine  too." 

Heidi  skipped  across  the  big  room  after  her  grand- 
father, who  opened  a  door  on  the  other  side ;  and  this 
led  into  a  little  room  where  he  had  arranged  his  bed. 
Then  came  another  door.  Heidi  quickly  opened  it  and 
stood  still  in  amazement,  for  it  looked  into  a  sort  of 
kitchen  more  enormous  than  any  she  had  ever  seen  in 
her  life.  It  had  given  her  grandfather  a  great  deal  of 
work,  and  there  was  still  much  to  do;  for  there  were 
holes  and  wide  cracks  in  the  walls  on  all  sides,  where 
the  wind  blew  in,  although  so  many  had  been  nailed 
up  with  boards  that  it  looked  as  if  little  cupboards  had 
been  made  all  around  in  the  wall.  The  grandfather 
had  also  succeeded  in  repairing  the  big  ancient  door 
with  wires  and  nails,  so  that  it  could  be  shut ;  and  this 
was  a  good  thing,  for  it  opened  into  the  most  ruined 
part  of  the  building,  overgrown  with  thick  briars,  where 
multitudes  of  lizards  and  beetles  had  their  abode. 

The  new  dwelling-place  pleased  Heidi  well,  and  on  the 
very  next  day,  when  Peter  came  to  see  how  they  were 
getting  along  there,  she  had  spied  out  every  nook  and 
corner  so  thoroughly  that  she  was  quite  at  home  and 
could  take  Peter  everywhere.  She  gave  him  no  rest, 
until  he  had  thoroughly  seen  all  the  wonderful  things 
which  their  new  house  contained. 

Heidi  slept  excellently  in  her  chimney  corner,  but 


THE   WINTER  IN  DORFLI  257 

in  the  morning  she  thought  she  had  wakened  on 
the  mountain,  and  that  she  must  open  the  door  of 
the  hut  at  once  to  see  if  the  reason  the  fir  trees 
were  not  roaring  was  because  the  deep,  heavy  snow  was 
lying  on  them  and  bending  down  their  branches.  So 
every  morning  at  first  she  had  to  look  around  her  for 
a  long  while  until  she  remembered  where  she  was,  and 
every  time  she  felt  something  stifling  and  pressing  her 
heart,  when  she  saw  that  she  was  not  at  home  on  the 
mountain.  But  when  she  heard  her  grandfather  talk- 
ing outside  with  Schwanli  and  Barli,  and  the  goats 
bleated  so  loud  and  merrily,  as  if  they  were  calling  to 
her,  "  Hurry  and  come  out,  Heidi,"  then  she  felt  that 
she  was  at  home  after  all,  and  jumped  gaily  out  of  bed 
and  hurried  to  the  big  goat  barn.  On  the  fourth  day 
Heidi  said  :  — 

"  To-day  I  must  really  go  up  to  see  the  grandmother ; 
she  can't  be  alone  so  long," 

But  her  grandfather  did  not  agree  to  it.  "  Not  to- 
day, nor  to-morrow  either,"  he  said.  **  The  Aim  is  six 
feet  deep  with  snow,  and  it  keeps  on  snowing ;  stout 
Peter  can  hardly  get  through  it,  A  little  thing  like 
you,  Heidi,  would  be  snowed  in  and  covered  up  the  first 
thing,  and  you  never  could  be  found  again.  Wait  a 
little,  until  it  freezes,  then  you  can  easily  walk  over  the 
crust." 

It  was  a  grief  to  Heidi  at  first  to  have  to  wait.  But 
the  days  were  now  so  full  of  work  that  one  passed 
away  and  another  came  unawares. 

Every  morning  and  every  afternoon  now  Heidi  went 


258  HEIDI 

to  school  and  was  quick  in  learning  all  her  lessons. 
She  hardly  ever  saw  Peter  in  school,  for  he  seldom 
came.  The  teacher  was  a  meek  man  and  only  now 
and  then  said  :  — 

"  It  seems  to  me  Peter  is  absent  again ;  school  would 
do  him  good ;  but  there  is  a  great  deal  of  snow  up  there, 
perhaps  he  can't  get  through." 

But  toward  evening,  when  school  was  out,  Peter 
usually  got  through  and  paid  a  visit  to  Heidi. 

After  a  few  days  the  sun  came  out  again  and  threw  its 
rays  over  the  white  earth  ;  but  it  went  down  behind  the 
mountains  again  very  early,  as  if  it  was  not  so  well 
pleased  to  look  down  as  in  sfimmer,  when  everything 
was  green  and  in  bloom.  In  the  evening  the  moon 
rose  very  bright  and  big,  and  all  night  long  shone  over 
the  vast  snow  fields,  and  the  next  morning  the  whole 
mountain  from  top  to  bottom  glistened  and  glittered 
like  a  crystal.  When  Peter  jumped  out  of  the  window 
into  the  deep  snow,  as  he  had  done  the  day  before, 
something  happened  which  he  had  not  expected.  In- 
stead of  coming  down  into  the  soft  snow,  he  struck  on 
a  surprisingly  hard  surface,  and  before  he  knew  it,  had 
slipped  a  good  piece  down  the  mountain,  like  an  empty 
sled.  In  great  surprise  he  finally  succeeded  in  getting 
on  his  feet  again,  and  then  stamped  with  all  his  might 
on  the  crust,  to  assure  himself  that  what  had  just  hap- 
pened was  really  possible.  It  was  actually  so ;  as  he 
stamped  and  beat  with  his  heels,  he  could  scarcely 
break  off  the  least  bit  of  ice ;  the  whole  Aim  was  frozen 
as  hard  as  a  rock.     Peter  liked  this  ;  for  he  knew  that 


THE    WINTER  IN  DORFLI  259 

this  state  of  things  was  necessary  for  Heidi  to  be  able 
to  come  up  there  again.  He  promptly  turned  back, 
swallowed  the  milk  which  his  mother  had  just  put  on 
the  table,  tucked  his  piece  of  bread  into  his  pocket,  and 
said  hastily :  — 

"  I  must  go  to  school." 

"  Yes,  do  go  and  study  hard,"  said  his  mother  en- 
couragingly. 

Peter  crawled  through  the  window,  for  now  they 
were  shut  in  again  on  account  of  the  heaps  of  ice  before 
the  door,  pulled  his  little  sled  after  him,  sat  down  on 
it,  and  shot  down  the  mountain. 

It  went  like  lightning,  and  when  he  came  near  to 
Dorfli,  where  it  goes  farther  down  toward  Mayenfeld, 
Peter  kept  on,  for  it  occurred  to  him  that  he  might 
injure  himself  and  his  sled  if  he  should  stop  suddenly. 
So  he  went  on  until  he  was  down  on  level  ground  and 
the  sled  stopped  of  itself.  Then  he  got  up  and  looked 
around. "  The  force  of  the  descent  had  carried  him 
somewhat  beyond  Mayenfeld.  Then  he  considered 
that  he  should  be  too  late  for  school,  as  it  had  begun 
some  time  before,  and  it  would  take  him  almost  an 
hour  to  climb  back  there  again.  So  he  had  plenty  of 
time  to  go  back.  This  he  did,  and  reached  Dorfli  just 
as  Heidi  had  returned  from  school  and  was  sitting  down 
to  dinner  with  her  grandfather.  Peter  went  in,  and  as 
this  time  he  had  a  definite  idea  to  propound,  it  was  upper- 
most in  his  mind,  and  he  had  to  speak  it  out  at  once. 

"We've  got  it,"  said  Peter,  standing  still  in  the 
middle  of  the  room. 


260  HEIDI 

"  Got  what,  general  ?  That  sounds  well,"  said  the 
uncle. 

"The  crust,"  replied  Peter, 

"  Oh !  oh  !  Now  I  can  go  up  to  see  the  grand- 
mother!  "  shouted  Heidi  joyfully,  for  she  had  at  once 
understood  Peter's  manner  of  expressing  himself.  "  But 
why  didn't  you  come  to  school,  then  ?  You  could  slide 
down  well  enough,"  she  suddenly  added  in  reproach  ; 
for  it  occurred  to  Heidi  that  it  was  not  right  to  remain 
away  from  school  if  one  could  go  as  well  as  not. 

"  Went  too  far  on  my  sled  ;  't  was  too  late,"  replied 
Peter. 

"That  is  called  desertion,"  said  the  uncle;  "and 
people  who  do  that  are  taken  by  the  ears !  Do  you 
hear.?" 

Peter  pulled  his  cap  in  alarm,  for  there  was  nobody 
in  the  world  for  whom  he  had  so  great  respect  as  for 
the  Aim-Uncle. 

"  And,  besides,  a  leader  such  as  you  are  ought  to  be 
doubly  ashamed  of  running  away  so,"  continued  the 
uncle. 

"What  would  you  think  if  your  goats  should  run 
one  this  way  and  another  that,  and  refuse  to  follow  you, 
and  do  what  was  good  for  them  ?  What  would  you 
do  then  ? " 

"  Beat  them,"  replied  Peter  knowingly. 

"  And  if  a  boy  behaves  like  an  unruly  goat  and  is 
beaten  a  little,  what  would  you  say  to  that  ? " 

"  Served  him  right,"  was  the  answer. 

"  Well,  now  understand,  goat-colonel,  if  you  go  past 


THE    WINTER  IN  DORFLI 


261 


the  school  on  your  sled  a  single  time  when  you  ought 
to  be  in  it,  come  here  to  me  and  get  what  you  deserve." 

Then  Peter  understood  what  the  Aim-Uncle  meant  : 
that  he  considered  the  boy  that  played  truant  like  an 
unruly  goat.  He  was  quite  impressed  by  this  likeness 
and  looked  a  little  anxiously  into  the  corner  to  see 
whether  he  could  discover  what  he  used  at  such  times 
for  the  goats. 

The  uncle  then  said  cheerfully  :  — 

"  Come  to  the  table  now  and  sit  down  with  us,  then 
Heidi  may  go  with  you.  If  you  bring  her  back  home 
at  evening,  you  will  find  your  supper  here." 

This  unexpected  turn  of  affairs  was  highly  delight- 
ful to  Peter ;  his  face  was  twisted  in  every  way  with 


delight.  He  obeyed  instantly  and  sat  down  beside 
Heidi.  But  the  child  had  already  had  enough  and  could 
swallow  no  more,  she  was  so  delighted  that  she  could 
go  to  see  the  grandmother.     She  pushed  the  big  potato 


262  HEIDI 

and  the  toasted  cheese,  still  left  on  her  plate,  toward 
Peter,  who  had  already  had  his  plate  filled  from  the  other 
side  by  the  uncle,  so  that  he  had  a  regular  wall  before 
him ;  but  courage  to  attack  it  was  not  lacking.  Heidi 
ran  to  the  cupboard  and  brought  out  the  little  cloak 
Klara  had  given  her ;  now  she  could  take  the  journey, 
warmly  wrapped  up,  with  the  hood  over  her  head.  She 
placed  herself  beside  Peter,  and  as  soon  as  he  had 
shoved  in  his  last  mouthful  she  said :  — 

"  Now  come  !  " 

Then  they  started  along.  Heidi  had  a  great  deal 
to  tell  Peter  about  Schwanli  and  Barli :  that  neither  of 
them  would  eat  anything  the  first  day  in  their  new 
barn,  and  that  they  had  hung  their  heads  the  whole  day 
and  not  made  a  sound.  She  had  asked  her  grandfather 
why  they  did  so,  and  he  had  said  that  they  felt  just  as 
she  did  in  Frankfurt,  for  they  had  never  been  down 
from  the  Aim  in  all  their  lives.     And  Heidi  added  :  — 

"  You  just  ought  to  know  once  what  that  is,  Peter." 

The  two  had  almost  reached  the  end  of  their  journey 
before  Peter  said  a  word,  and  it  seemed  as  if  he  was 
so  deeply  absorbed  in  thought  that  he  could  not  hear 
right,  as  usual.  When  they  reached  the  hut,  Peter 
stood  still  and  said  somewhat  crossly :  — 

"There !  I  would  rather  go  to  school  than  take  from 
the  uncle  what  he  said." 

Heidi  was  of  the  same  opinion  and  encouraged  him 
eagerly  in  his  decision. 

In  the  room  inside,  Peter's  mother  was  sitting  alone 
with  her  mending ;  she  said  the  grandmother  had  to 


THE   WINTER  IN  DORFLI  263 

spend  the  day  in  bed,  as  it  was  too  cold  for  her,  and 
besides  she  was  not  quite  well.  This  was  something 
new  to  Heidi ;  the  grandmother  had  always  before  been 
sitting  in  her  place  in  the  corner.  She  ran  straight  to 
her  in  her  room.  She  was  lying  entirely  wrapped  up  in 
the  gray  shawl  in  her  narrow  bed  with  the  thin  covering. 

"  God  be  praised  and  thanked  !  "  said  the  grandmother 
as  soon  as  she  heard  Heidi  running  in.  All  the  autumn 
long  she  had  had  a  secret  anxiety  in  her  heart,  and  it 
still  pursued  her,  especially  if  Heidi  did  not  come  to  see 
her  for  a  long  time.  Peter  had  reported  how  a  strange 
gentleman  from  Frankfurt  had  been  there  and  always 
went  up  to  the  pasture  with  them  and  talked  with 
Heidi,  and  the  grandmother  believed  nothing  else  than 
that  the  gentleman  had  come  to  take  Heidi  away  again. 
After  he  finally  went  off  alone,  her  anxiety  returned 
lest  some  person  should  be  sent  from  Frankfurt  to  take 
the  child  back.  Heidi  ran  to  her  bedside  and  asked 
with  concern  :  — 

"  Are  you  very  ill,  grahdmother }  " 

"  No,  no,  child,"  said  the  old  dame  soothingly,  while 
she  stroked  the  child's  face  affectionately ;  "  the  cold 
weather  has  got  into  my  limbs  a  little." 

"  Will  you  be  well  right  away,  as  soon  as  it  is  warm 
again  ?  "  asked  Heidi  eagerly. 

"Yes,  yes,  God  willing,  even  before  that,  so  that  I 
can  get  to  my  spinning-wheel.  I  even  thought  to-day 
that  I  would  try  it ;  to-morrow  it  will  surely  be  going 
again,"  said  the  grandmother,  for  she  had  already 
noticed  that  the  child  was  alarmed. 


264  HEIDI 

Her  words  soothed  Heidi,  who  was  very  much  trou- 
bled, for  she  had  never  found  the  grandmother  sick  in 
bed  before.  She  looked  at  her  a  little  while  in  surprise, 
and  then  said  :  — 

"  In  Frankfurt  they  put  on  a  shawl  to  go  outdoors  in. 
Did  you  think  you  ought  to  put  it  on  when  you  go  to 
bed,  grandmother }  " 

"Do  you  know,  Heidi,"  she  replied,  "I  wrap  the 
shawl  around  me  so  in  bed  in  order  not  to  freeze.  I 
am  so  glad  to  have  it,  for  the  bed  covering  is  rather 
thin." 

"  But,  grandmother,"  Heidi  began  again,  "  your  head 
goes  down  hill,  where  it  ought  to  go  up ;  a  bed  ought 
not  to  be  like  that." 

"  I  know  it,  child,  I  realize  it  well  enough";  and  the 
grandmother  tried  to  find  a  better  place  for  the  pillow, 
that  lay  like  a  thin  board  under  her  head.  "  You  see  the 
pillow  was  never  thick,  and  now  I  have  slept  so  many 
years  on  it  that  I  have  made  it  rather  fiat." 

"  Oh,  if  only  I  had  asked  Klara  when  I  was  in  Frank- 
furt to  let  me  take  my  bed  home  with  me ! "  exclaimed 
Heidi ;  "  it  had  three  big,  thick  pillows,  one  on  top  of 
another,  so  that  I  could  n't  sleep,  and  always  slipped 
down  where  it  was  flat,  and  then  I  had  to  move  up 
again  because  I  ought  n't  to  sleep  so.  Could  you  sleep 
so,  grandmother .?  " 

"Yes,  irfdeed;  it  would  make  me  warm,  and  I  could 
breathe  so  easily  if  I  could  lie  with  my  head  high," 
said  the  grandmother,  lifting  her  head  rather  wearily, 
as  if  to  find  a  higher  place  for  it.     "  But  we  won't  talk 


THE   WINTER  IN  DORFLI  265 

about  that,  for  I  have  to  thank  the  dear  Lord  for  so 
much  that  other  sick  old  people  do  not  have :  the  nice 
rolls  that  I  have  all  the  time,  and  the  nice  warm  shawl 
here,  and  your  coming  to  see  me,  Heidi.  Will  you 
read  something  to  me  again  to-day,  Heidi  ? " 

Heidi  ran  out  and  brought  back  the  old  hymn  book. 
Then  she  found  one  beautiful  song  after  another,  for 
she  knew  them  well  now,  and  enjoyed  them  herself, 
and  it  was  many  days  since  she  had  heard  all  the  verses 
she  was  so  fond  of. 

The  grandmother  lay  with  folded  hands,  and  on  her 
face,  which  at  first  had  looked  so  troubled,  now  rested  a 
happy  smile,  as  if  a  great  good  fortune  had  come  to  her. 

Suddenly  Heidi  stopped. 

"  Grandmother,  are  you  well  again  already  .-*  " 

"  I  'm  feeling  much  better,  Heidi.  What  you  have 
read  to  me  has  done  me  good.     Finish  it,  will  you }  " 

The  child  read  the  hymn  to  the  end,  and  when,  she 
came  to  the  last  words,  — 

"  When  mine  eyes  grow  dimmer,  sadder, 
Pour  thy  light  into  my  heart. 
That  I  may  pass  over  gladder 

Than  men  to  their  homes  depart^''  — 

the  grandmother  repeated  them  over  and  over,  and  an 
expression  of  very  joyful  expectation  came  over  her 
face.  Heidi  felt  so  happy  to  see  it.  All  the  sunny 
day  of  her  journey  home  rose  before  her,  and  she 
exclaimed  with  delight :  — 

**  Grandmother,  I  know  already  how  it  seems  to  be 
on  the  way  home." 


266  HEIDT 

The  grandmother  did  not  answer,  but  she  had  heard 
the  words  perfectly,  and  the  expression  which  had 
pleased  Heidi  remained  on  her  face. 

After  a  while  the  child  said  :  — 

"  It  is  growing  dark  now,  grandmother ;  I  must  go 
back ;  but  I  am  so  glad  that  you  are  happy  again." 

The  grandmother  took  the  child's  hand  in  hers  and 
held  it  fast ;  then  she  said  :  — 

"  Yes,  I  am  so  happy  again  ;  if  I  must  stay  lying 
here,  I  am  content.  You  see,  nobody  who  has  not  been 
through  it  knows  what  it  is  to  have  to  lie  for  days  and 
days  all  alone,  and  not  hear  a  word  from  another  human 
being,  and  not  be  able  to  see  —  not  see  even  a  single  sun- 
beam. Then  such  gloomy  thoughts  come  to  one  that 
it  often  seems  as  if  it  never  could  be  bright  again  and 
one  could  not  bear  it  any  longer.  But  when  I  hear  the 
words  which  you  have  read  to  me,  it  is  as  if  a  light 
arose  in  my  heart,  and  that  makes  me  happy  again." 

Then  the  grandmother  let  go  Heidi's  hand,  and  after 
she  had  said  good-night,  Heidi  ran  back  into  the  other 
room  and  hurriedly  drew  Peter  out,  for  it  had  already 
grown  late.  However,  outside  the  moon  was  in  the 
sky  and  shone  as  brightly  on  the  white  snow  as  if  the 
daylight  had  come  back.  Peter  arranged  his  sled,  sat 
down  on  it  in  front,  with  Heidi  behind,  and  away  they 
shot  down  the  Aim,  exactly  as  if  they  were  two  birds 
rushing  through  the  air. 

Later,  when  Heidi  was  lying  in  her  lovely,  deep  bed 
of  hay,  she  began  to  think  about  the  grandmother  again, 
and  how  uncomfortably  her  head  lay;  and  then  she 


THE    WINTER  IN  DORFLI  267 

remembered  all  that  she  had  said,  and  the  light  the 
words  kindled  in  her  heart.  And  she  thought  if  the 
grandmother  only  could  hear  the  words  every  day,  then 
she  would  feel  well  all  the  time.  But  she  knew  that 
now  a  whole  week,  or  perhaps  even  two,  must  pass  before 
she  could  go  up  to  her  again.  This  seemed  so  sad  to 
Heidi  that  she  kept  thinking  harder  and  harder  what 
she  could  do  to  have  the  grandmother  hear  the  words 
every  day.  Suddenly  help  came  to  her,  and  she  was 
so  glad  about  it  that  it  seemed  to  her  she  could  hardly 
wait  for  the  morning  to  come  so  that  she  might  carry 
out  her  plan.  All  at  once  Heidi  sat  straight  up  in  bed, 
for  she  had  been  so  deep  in  thought  that  she  had  not 
sent  up  her  evening  prayer  to  the  dear  Lord,  and  she 
would  never  forget  that  again. 

When  she  had  prayed  straight  from  her  heart  for 
herself  and  her  grandfather  and  the  grandmother,  she 
fell  back  at  once  into  her  soft  hay  and  slept  very 
soundly  and  peacefully  until  the  bright  morning. 


CHAPTER   V 

THE   WINTER   STILL  CONTINUES 

After  this,  Peter  came  down  to  school  at  exactly  the 
right  time.  He  brought  his  dinner  with  him  in  his 
bag,  for  this  was  the  custom  there.  When  all  the  chil- 
dren in  Dorfli  had  gone  home  at  noon,  the  other  scholars, 
who  lived  at  a  distance,  sat  down  on  the  class  table, 
braced  their  feet  firmly  against  the  seats,  and  spread 
the  luncheon  they  had  brought  in  their  laps,  to  take 
their  midday  meal.  They  could  enjoy  themselves  until 
one  o'clock,  then  school  began  again.  When  Peter 
had  spent  the  day  in  school,  he  went  after  it  was  over 
to  the  uncle's,  to  pay  a  visit  to  Heidi. 

When  he  entered  the  big  room,  Heidi  ran  to  meet 
him,  for  she  had  been  expecting  him. 

"Peter,  I  know  something,"  she  called  to  him. 

"Say  it,"  he  replied. 

"  You  must  learn  to  read,"  was  the  news  she  had  for 
him. 

"  It 's  no  use,"  was  the  reply. 

"  Oh,  Peter !  I  don't  agree  with  you,"  said  Heidi 
eagerly  ;  "  I  think  that  you  can  after  a  little." 

"  Cannot,"  remarked  Peter. 

"  Nobody  believes  such  a  thing  as  that,  and  I  don't 

either,"  said  Heidi  very  decidedly.     "  The  grandmamma 

268 


THE    WINTER  STILL   CONTINUES  269 

in  Frankfurt  knew  that  it  was  n't  true,  and  she  told  me 
that  I  ought  not  to  believe  it  either." 

Peter  was  dumfounded  at  this  news. 

"I  will  teach  you  to  read;  I  know  how  very  well," 
Heidi  continued.  "  You  must  learn  now  once  for  all, 
and  then  you  must  read  one  or  two  hymns  every  day  to 
your  grandmother." 

"  Don't  want  to,"  grumbled  Peter. 

This  obstinacy  toward  something  which  was  good 
and  right  and  which  Heidi  had  set  her  heart  on  made 
her  angry.  With  flashing  eyes  she  placed  herself  in 
front  of  the  boy  and  said  threateningly  :  — 

"  Then  I  will  tell  you  what  will  happen,  if  you  will 
never  learn  anything  ;  your  mother  has  already  said 
twice  that  you  would  have  to  go  to  Frankfurt  to  learn 
something,  and  I  know  very  well  where  the  boys  go 
to  school  there ;  Klara  showed  me  the  frightfully  big 
house  when  we  were  out  driving.  There  they  don't 
go  merely  when  they  are  boys,  but  just  the  same  when 
they  get  to  be  great,  big  men ;  I  saw  that  myself ;  and 
then  you  must  n't  suppose  that  there  is  only  one  teacher 
there,  as  we  have  here,  and  such  a  kind  one.  Whole 
rows,  ever  so  many  together,  are  always  going  into  the 
house,  and  all  of  them  are  dressed  in  black,  as  if  they 
were  going  to  church,  and  have  such  high  black  hats  on 
their  heads";  and  Heidi  measured  the  size  of  the  hats 
from  the  floor  up. 

The  shivers  ran  down  Peter's  back. 

"  And  then  you  would  have  to  go  in  among  all  the 
masters,"  continued  Heidi  eagerly ;  "and  if  it  came  your 


270  HEIDI 

turn,  you  couldn't  read  at  all  and  would  make  mistakes 
even  in  the  alphabet.  Then  you  would  see  how  the 
masters  would  laugh  at  you,  and  that  is  much  worse 
than  Tinette,  and  you  ought  to  know  how  it  is  when 
she  laughs  at  you." 

"Then  I  will,"  said  Peter  half  petulantly,  half  whin- 
ingly. 

In  a  moment  Heidi  was  pacified. 

"  Well,  that  is  right,  and  we  will  begin  at  once,"  she 
cried  in  her  delight ;  and  pulling  Peter  in  a  business- 
like way  to  the  table,  she  brought  out  the  articles 
needed  for  work. 

In  Klara's  big  package  there  was  a  little  book  which 
had  pleased  Heidi  very  much,  and  it  had  occurred  to 
her  the  night  before  that  it  would  be  a  good  thing  to  use 
for  teaching  Peter.     It  was  an  A-B-C  book  in  rhyme. 

They  both  sat  down  at  the  table,  their  heads  bent 
over  the  little  book,  and  the  lesson  began. 

Peter  had  to  spell  the  first  sentence  over  and  over 
again,  for  Heidi  insisted  on  having  it  done  nicely  and 
without  hesitation. 

Finally  she  said  :  — 

"  You  don't  know  it  yet,  but  I  will  read  it  over  and 
over  to  you  ;  if  you  know  what  it  means,  you  can  spell 
it  out  better";  and  Heidi  read  :  — 

^^If  A,  B,  C,you  do  not  know, 
Before  the  school  board  you  will  goJ** 

"I  will  not  go,"  said  Peter  angrily. 
"Where.?"  asked  Heidi. 


THE   WINTER  STILL   CONTINUES  271 

"  Before  the  school  board,"  was  the  reply. 

"  Then  try  to  learn  the  three  letters,  and  you  won't 
have  to  go,"  explained  Heidi. 

Then  Peter  began  again  and  repeated  the  three  let- 
ters perseveringly  until  Heidi  said  :  — 

"  Now  you  know  these  three." 

But  as  she  noticed  what  an  effect  the  words  had 
made  on  Peter,  she  wanted  to  prepare  a  little  for  the 
following  lessons. 

"  Wait,  —  I  will  read  you  the  other  sentences,"  she 
continued ;  "  then  you  will  see  all  that  is  coming." 

And  she  began  to  read  very  clearly  and  distinctly  : — 

•'  Z>,  E,  F,  G,  must  smoothly  fly. 
Or  else  misfortune  will  be  nigh. 

If  H,  I,  J,  K,  are  forgot, 
Misfortune  is  upon  the  spot. 

Whoe'er  on  L,  M,  still  will  stumble 
Must  pay  a  fine  and  then  feel  humble. 

'     There ''s  something  bad,  and  if  you  knew 
You  W  quickly  learn  N,  O,  P,  Q. 

If  still  on  R,  S,   T,  you  halt,  \ 

The  hartn  that  comes  will  be  your  fault." 

Here  Heidi  stopped,  for  Peter  was  as  still  as  a  mouse, 
and  she  had  to  see  what  he  was  doing.  All  these  threats 
and  mysterious  horrors  had  so  overcome  him  that  he 
could  not  move  a  muscle,  and  was  staring  at  Heidi 
in  terror. 

This  immediately  touched  Heidi's  tender  heart,  and 
she  said  comfortingly  :  — 


272  HEIDI 

"You  mustn't  be  frightened,  Peter;  just  come  to 
me  every  afternoon,  and  if  you  learn  as  well  as  you 
have  to-day,  you  will  know  all  the  letters  after  a  while, 
and  then  nothing  will  happen  to  you.  But  you  must 
come  every  day,  and  not  the  way  you  go  to  school.  If 
it  snows  it  won't  do  you  any  harm." 

Peter  promised  to  do  so,  for  fear  had  made  him  quite 
docile  anc;!  obedient.     Then  he  started  home. 

Peter  followed  Heidi's  orders  strictly,  and  every 
afternoon  studied  the  other  letters  eagerly  and  learned 
the  rhymes  by  heart. 

The  grandfather  often  sat  in  the  room  and  listened 
to  the  exercise,  while  he  smoked  his  pipe  contentedly, 
and  every  little  while  the  corners  of  his  mouth  twitched, 
as  if  he  could  hardly  keep  from  laughing. 

After  the  great  struggle  Peter  was  usually  invited  to 
remain  and  take  supper  with  them ;  and  this  at  once 
richly  rewarded  him  for  the  anguish  that  day's  verse 
had  caused  him  to  endure. 

Thus  the  winter  days  passed  away.  Peter  was  regu- 
lar and  really  made  progress  with  his  letters. 

But  he  had  to  wrestle  every  day  with  the  verses. 

They  had  gone  as  far  as  U.  When  Heidi  read  the 
couplet,  — 

"  If  ever  you  mix  U  and  V, 
You  '//  go  where  you  ''II  not  like  to  bi^''  — - 

Peter  growled  :  — 

"  Yes,  see  if  I  will !  " 

But  he  learned  them  thoroughly,  as  if  he  was  under 
the  impression  that  some  one  might  take  him  secretly 


THE   WINTER  STILL    CONTINUES  273 

by  the  throat  and  carry  him  where  he  would  not  care 
to  go. 

On  the  following  afternoon  Heidi  read  :  — 

"  If  noTv  you  fail  to  know  the   W, 
There  hangs  a  stick  and  it  will  trouble  you.'''' 

Then  Peter  looked  around  and  said  scornfully  :  — 

"There  is  n't  any." 

"  Yes,  there  is  ;  don't  you  know  what  grandfather  has 
in  the  chest.''"  asked  Heidi.  "A  stick  as  big  around 
as  my  arm,  and  when  he  takes  it  out  he  can  say  :  — 

"  '  Behold  the  stick,  and  it  will  trouble  you.'  " 

Peter  knew  the  big  hazel  stick.  He  bent  over  his 
W  at  once  and  tried  to  grasp  it. 

The  next  day  it  read  :  — 

'■'■  If  you  the  letter  X  forget. 
For  you  no  supper  will  be  set.'''' 

Then  Peter  looked  inquiringly  toward  the  cupboard 
where  the  bread  and  cheese  were  kept,  arid  said  snap- 
pishly :  — 

"  I  have  never  said  that  I  should  forget  X." 

"  That  is  right,  if  you  don't  forget  it ;  then  we  can 
learn  one  letter  more,"  suggested  Heidi;  "and  to-mor- 
row you  will  have  only  one  left." 

Peter  was  not  agreed,  but  Heidi  read  :  — 

'■'■  If  you  on   Y  to-day  delay. 
With  scorn  and  shame  you  ''II  go  away.'''' 

Then  there  rose  before  Peter's  eyes  all  the  masters  in 
Frankfurt  with  their  tall,  black  hats  on  their  heads  and 


274 


HEIDI 


scorn  and  ridicule  in  their  faces.  He  immediately 
attacked  the  letter  Y,  and  did  not  let  it  go  again  until 
he  knew  it  so  well  that  he  could  close  his  eyes  and  still 
see  how  it  looked. 

On  the  next  day  Peter  was  feeling  rather  proud  when 
he  came  to  Heidi,  for  there  was  only  one  letter  left  for 

him  to  study,  and  when 
Heidi  read  the  verse  to 
him, 

"  Who  hesitates  upon  the  Z, 
With  the  Hottentots  shall  be,'' 

he  said  sneeringly  :  — 

"Yes,    when   nobody 
knows  where  they  are  !  " 

"Indeed,  Peter,  my 
grandfather  knows,"  as- 
serted Heidi;  "just  wait 
and  I  will  ask  him  right 
away  where  they  are;  he 
is  over  at  the  pastor's 
house"  ;  and  Heidi  jumped 
up  and  was  going  out  at  the  door. 

"  Wait ! "  screamed  Peter  in  great  alarm,  for  he 
already  saw  in  his  imagination  the  Aim-Uncle  coming 
in  with  the  pastor,  and  the  two  seizing  him  at  once  and 
sending  him  off  to  the  Hottentots,  for  he  really  did  not 
know  the  name  of  Z.  His  troubled  cry  made  Heidi 
stand  still. 

"  What  is  the  matter  with  you  ? "  she  asked  in  surprise, 


THE    WINTER  STILL    CONTINUES  275 

"  Nothing  !  Come  back  !  I  will  learn  it,"  stammered 
Peter.  But  Heidi  wanted  to  know  where  the  Hotten- 
tots were,  and  she  was  going  to  ask  her  grandfather  any 
way.  But  Peter  screamed  so  desperately  after  her  that 
she  gave  it  up  and  came  back.  He  had  to  do  some- 
thing to  make  up  for  it,  however.  Not  only  did  Heidi 
make  him  repeat  the  letter  Z  so  many  times  that  it 
remained  fast  in  his  memory  forever,  but  she  went  on 
at  once  to  syllables,  and  Peter  learned  so  much  that 
afternoon  that  he  made  a  great  advance. 

Thus  it  went  on  day  after  day. 

The  crust  had  become  soft  again,  and  every  day 
there  was  a  fresh  fall  of  snow,  so  that  for  three  long 
weeks  together  Heidi  could  not  go  up  to  see  the  grand- 
mother. All  the  more  eager  was  she,  in  her  work  with 
Peter,  to  have  him  able  to  read  the  hymns.  One 
evening  Peter  came  home  from  Heidi's  and  ran  into 
the  room,  saying  :  — 

"  I  can  do  it !  " 

"What  can  you  do,  Peterli }  "  asked  his  mother,  full 
of  hope. 

"  Reading,"  he  answered. 

"  Is  it  possible  !  Did  you  hear,  grandmother  .•*  '* 
exclaimed  Brigitte. 

The  grandmother  had  heard  it  and  also  wondered 
how  it  had  happened. 

"  Now  I  must  read  a  hymn,  for  Heidi  said  so,"  Peter 
went  on  to  say.  His  mother  at  once  took  down  the 
book,  and  the  grandmother  was  delighted,  it  was  so 
long  since  she  had  heard  any  good  words.     Peter  sat 


276  HEIDI 

down  at  the  table  and  began  to  read.  His  mother  sat 
down  beside  him  to  listen  ;  after  each  verse  she  said  in 
amazement  :  — 

"  Who  could  have  thought  it  ?  " 

His  grandmother  followed  one  verse  after  another 
attentively,  but  said  nothing  to  it. 

The  day  after  this  occurrence  it  happened  that  Peter's 
class  had  a  reading  lesson.  When  Peter's  turn  came 
the  teacher  said  :  — 

"  Peter,  must  I  pass  by  you  again,  as  usual,  or  will 
you  once  more  —  I  will  not  say  read,  I  will  say  try  to 
stammer  through  a  line  }  " 

Peter  began  and  read  three  lines  one  after  another 
without  stopping. 

The  teacher  laid  his  book  aside.  He  looked  at  Peter 
in  dumb  astonishment,  as  if  he  had  never  seen  anything 
like  it  before.     At  last  he  said  :  — 

"  Peter,  a  miracle  has  happened  to  you  I  Long 
as  I  have  worked  over  you  with  inexpressible  patience 
you  have  never  been  able  to  grasp  even  the  alphabet. 
Now  that  I  have,  although  unwillingly,  given  up  work- 
ing over  you  as  a  useless  task,  it  happens  that  you 
come  out  and  have  learned,  not  only  the  alphabet,  but 
also  to  read  properly,  as  well  as  quite  clearly.  Who  has 
been  able  to  work  such  a  miracle  in  our  time,  Peter  ? " 

"  Heidi,"  was  the  reply. 

In  the  greatest  surprise  the  teacher  looked  toward 
Heidi,  who  was  sitting  quite  innocently  in  her  seat,  so 
that,  there  was  nothing  extraordinary  in  her  appearance. 
He  continued :  — 


THE   WINTER   STILL  CONTINUES  277 

"  I  have  noticed  a  change  in  you  in  many  ways,  Peter. 
While  you  used  to  be  often  absent  from  school  the 
whole  week,  —  yes,  several  weeks  together,  —  lately  you 
have  not  stayed  away  a  day.  Who  can  have  caused 
such  a  change,  for  the  better  in  you .?  " 

"The  uncle,"  was  the  reply. 

With  increasing  astonishment  the  teacher  looked  from 
Peter  to  Heidi,  and  from  her  back  again  to  Peter. 

"We  will  try  it  once  more,"  he  then  said  cautiously; 
and  Peter  had  to  prove  his  knowledge  with  three  lines 
more.    It  was  a  fact,  he  had  learned  to  read. 

As  soon  as  school  was  over,  the  teacher  hastened  to 
the  pastor's  house  to  tell  him  what  had  happened,  and 
what  a  good  influence  the  uncle  and  Heidi  were  having 
in  the  parish. 

Every  evening  now  Peter  read  a  hymn  at  home.  So 
far  he  obeyed  Heidi,  but  no  farther,  for  he  never  under- 
took a  second  one  ;  nor  did  the  grandmother  ever  ask 
him  to  do  so. 

His  mother  Brigitte  wondered  every  day  that  Peter 
had  succeeded  in  learning  to  read,  and  many  an  eve- 
ning when  the  reading  was  over  and  the  reader  lay  in 
his  bed,  she  would  say  again  to  the  grandmother :  — 

"  We  can't  be  pleased  enough  that  Peterli  has  learned 
to  read  so  beautifully  ;  now  there  's  no  knowing  what 
he  may  become." 

Then  the  grandmother  would  answer  :  — 

"  Yes,  it  is  a  good  thing  for  him  that  he  has  learned 
something ;  but  I  shall  be  heartily  glad  if  the  dear  Lord 
sends   the   spring   soon,   so   that    Heidi   can    come    up 


278  NEWT 

again.  It  is  as  if  she  read  entirely  different  hymns. 
Something  is  so  often  left  out  in  the  verses  when  Peter 
reads  them,  and  I  have  to  try  to  remember  it,  and 
then  I  can't  follow  the  thought,  and  it  does  n't  impress 
my  heart  as  it  does  when  Heidi  reads  the  words.  " 

This  happened  because  Peter  arranged  the  reading 
a  little  so  that  it  would  not  be  too  difficult  for  him.  If 
a  word  came  that  was  too  long  or  looked  hard,  he  pre- 
ferred to  leave  it  out,  for  he  thought  it  would  be  all 
the  same  to  the  grandmother  whether  there  were  three 
or  four  words  in  a  line. 

So  it  came  about  that  there  were  hardly  any  nouns 
left  in  the  hymns  Peter  read. 


CHAPTER   VI 

DISTANT   FRIENDS   ARE   HEARD    FROM 

May  had  come.  From  every  height  the  overflowing 
brooks  were  rushing  down  into  the  valley.  Warm, 
bright  sunshine  lay  on  the  mountain.  It  had  grown 
green  again ;  the  last  traces  of  snow  had  melted  away 
and  the  first  little  flowers,  awakened  by  the  alluring 
sunbeams,  were  peeping  up  with  their  bright  eyes  out 
of  the  fresh  grass.  The  joyous  spring  wind  blew 
through  the  fir  trees  and  shook  off  the  old,  dark 
needles,  so  that  the  young,  bright  green  ones  could 
come  out  and  dress  the  trees  in  splendor.  High  above 
the  old  robber-bird  was  swinging  his  wings  in  the  blue 
air,  and  around  the  Aim  hut  the  golden  sunshine  lay 
warm  on  the  ground,  drying  up  the  last  damp  places  so 
that  one  could  sit  down  wherever  one  liked. 

Heidi  was  on  the  mountain  again.  She  ran  here 
and  there  and  could  not  tell  which  spot  was  the  loveliest. 
Now  she  had  to  listen  to  the  wind  as  it  blew  down  deep 
and  mysterious  from  the  cliffs  above,  coming  nearer 
and  growing  mightier,  and  then  leaping  into  the  fir 
trees,  bending  and  shaking  them  until  it  seemed  as  if 
it  were  shouting  with  delight ;  and  Heidi  had  to  shout 
too,  while  she  was  blown  hither  and  thither  like  a  little 

leaf.     Then  she  would  run  back  to  the  sunYiy  spot  in 

279 


280  HEIDI 

front  of  the  house,  sit  down  on  the  ground  and  peep 
into  the  short  grass  to  see  how  many  fiower-cups  were 
going  to  open  or  were  o^en  already.  So  many  gay 
gnats  and  little  beetles  were  hopping  and  crawling  and 
dancing  about  in  the  sun  and  enjoying  themselves,  and 
Heidi  was  happy  with  them,  and  drew  in  long  breaths 
of  the  spring  fragrance,  which  came  up  out  of  the  fresh 
earth.  It  seemed  even  more  beautiful  on  the  moun- 
tain than  ever  before.  The  thousand  little  creatures 
must  have  liked  it  as  well  as  she  did,  for  it  seemed 
exactly  as  if  they  were  all  humming  and  singing  for 
sheer  delight  :  "  On  the  Aim  !  On  the  Aim  !  On  the 
Aim !  " 

From  the  workshop  behind  the  house,  every  now 
and  then,  came  the  sound  of  busy  hammering  and  saw- 
ing, and  Heidi  listened,  for  it  was  the  old  familiar 
sound  she  knew  so  well,  and  which  she  had  heard  ever 
since  she  came  to  live  on  the  Aim.  She  had  to  jump 
up  and  run  at  once  to  the  shop,  for  she  wished  to  know 
what  her  grandfather  was  doing.  In  front  of  the  work- 
shop door  there  was  standing  a  fine  new  stool  already 
finished,  and  her  grandfather  was  working  skilfully  on 
another. 

"  Oh,  I  know  what  that  is  for !"  exclaimed  Heidi  with 
delight.  "  That  will  be  needed  when  they  come  from 
Frankfurt.  It  is  for  the  grandmamma,  and  the  one 
you  are  making  now  is  for  Klara,  and  then  —  then  there 
will  have  to  be  one  more,"  continued  Heidi  hesitatingly ; 
"or  do  you  think,  grandfather,  that  Fraulein  Rotten- 
meier  will,  not  come  with  them  .''  " 


DISTANT  FRIENDS  HEARD  FROM  281 

"That  I  can't  say  now,"  said  her  grandfather,  "but 
it  will  be  safer  to  have  one  ready,  so  that  we  can  invite 
her  to  sit  down  if  she  comes." 

Heidi  looked  critically  at  the  little  wooden  stool  and 
quietly  considered  how  it  would  suit  Fraulein  Rotten- 
meier.  After  a  while  she  said  doubtfully,  shaking  her 
head  :  — 

"  Grandfather,  I  don't  believe  she  would  sit  on  it." 

'*  Then  we  will  invite  her  to  the  sofa  with  the  beau- 
tiful green  grass  covering,"  replied  the  grandfather 
quietly. 

As  Heidi  was  thinking  where  the  beautiful  sofa  with 
the  green  grass  covering  could  be,  suddenly  there 
sounded  from  above  a  whistling  and  calling  and  rod 
swinging  through  the  air,  so  that  Heidi  knew  at  once 
what  it  was.  She  ran  out  and  was  surrounded  in  a 
twinkling  by  the  leaping  goats.  They  must  have  been 
as  glad  as  Heidi  to  be  up  on  the  mountain  again,  for 
they  jumped  higher  and  bleated  more  merrily  than  they 
had  ever  done  before,  and  Heidi  was  pushed  back  and 
forth  by  them,  for  each  one  was  anxious  to  get  next  to 
her  and  express  its  delight.  But  Peter  pushed  them 
all  away,  some  to  the  right  and  others  to  the  left,  for 
he  had  a  message  to  give  to  Heidi.  When  he  had 
made  his  way  to  her,  he  held  out  a  letter  toward  her. 

*•  There  !  "  he  said,  leaving  Heidi  to  find  out  the  rest 
for  herself.     She  was  very  much  surprised. 

"  Did  you  find  a  letter  for  me  up  in  the  pasture }  " 
she  asked  in  great  astonishment. 

"No,"  was  the  answer. 


282  HEIDI 

"Well,  where  did  you  get  it,  then,  Peter?'* 

"  Out  of  the  lunch  bag." 

That  was  so.  The  evening  before  the  postmaster 
in  Dorfli  had  given  him  the  letter  for  Heidi.  Peter 
had  put  it  in  the  empty  bag.  In  the  morning  he  liad 
put  his  cheese  and  his  piece  of  bread  on  top  of  it  and 
had  started  off.  He  had  seen  the  uncle  and  Heidi 
when  he  went  to  get  their  goats  ;  at  noon,  when  he  had 
finished  his  bread  and  cheese  and  was  going  to  shake 
the  crumbs  out  of  the  bag,  the  letter  fell  into  his  hand. 

Heidi  read  the  address  carefully ;  then  she  ran  back 
to  her  grandfather  in  the  shop  and  held  out  the  letter 
to  him  in  high  glee. 

"  From  Frankfurt !  From  Klara  !  Will  you  hear  it 
now,  grandfather  .'*  " 

He  was  very  ready  to  hear  it,  and  so  was  Peter,  who 
had  followed  Heidi.  He  leaned  his  back  against  the 
doorpost  in  order  to  have  a  firm  support  while  she 
read  her  letter,  as  it  was  easier  to  follow  Heidi  so. 

"Dear  Heidi,  - —  Everything  is  already  packed,  and  in  two  or 
three  days  we  shall  start  on  our  journey  as  soon  as  papa  is  ready, 
but  he  cannot  go  with  us,  for  he  has  to  go  to  Paris  first.  The 
doctor  comes  every  day  and  calls  out  at  the  door :  *  Away  ! 
Away !  To  the  mountains !  '  He  is  impatient  for  us  to  get  off. 
You  ought  to  know  how  much  he  liked  it  himself  on  the  Aim ! 
He  has  come  to  see  us  almost  every  day  all  winter  long  ;  when- 
ever he  came  to  see  me  he  always  said  he  must  tell  me  all  about 
it  again  !  Then  he  would  sit  down  by  me  and  tell  me  about  all 
the  days  he  spent  with  you  and  your  grandfather  on  the  Aim, 
about  the  mountains  and  the  flowers,  and  the  stillness  so  high  up 
above  all  the  villages  and  roads,  and  about  the  fine  fresh  air  ;  and 


DISTANT  FRIENDS  HEARD   FROM  283 

he  often  said  :  '  Everybody  ought  to  get  well  up  there.'  He  him- 
self is  so  different  from  what  he  had  been  for  a  long  time,  and 
looks  quite  young  and  happy  again.  Oh,  how  glad  I  shall  be  to 
see  it  all  and  be  with  you  on  the  mountain,  and  learn  to  know 
Peter  and  the  goats !  But  first  I  have  to  take  the  cure  in  Ragatz 
for  about  six  weeks  ;  the  doctor  has  ordered  it.  Afterwards  we 
shall  stay  in  Dorfli,  and  I  shall  be  carried  up  on  the  mountain  in 
my  chair,  in  fine  weather,  to  spend  the  day  with  you. 

"  Grandmamma  is  coming  too  and  will  stay  with  me  ;  she  also 
will  enjoy  going  up  to  see  you.  But  think  of  it,  Fraulein  Rotten- 
meier  will  not  come  with  us.  Almost  every  day  grandmamma 
says  to  her :  — 

"  '  How  is  it  about  the  journey  to  Switzerland,  worthy  Rotten- 
meier  ?     If  you  would  like  to  come  with  us,  you  can  do  so.' 

"  But  she  always  thanks  her  very  politely  and  says  she  would  n't 
be  so  presuming.  But  I  know  what  she  is  thinking  about : 
Sebastian  gave  such  a  frightful  description  of  the  mountains,  when 
he  came  back  from  going  with  you,  —  what  terrible  overhanging 
crags  there  were,  and  what  danger  there  was  everywhere  of  falling 
down  into  the  chasms  and  ravines,  that  it  was  so  steep  climbing 
up  that  there  was  risk  at  every  step  of  falling  down  backwards, 
and  that  goats  might  be  able  to  climb  up  there,  but  no  human 
being  could  do  so  without  peril  to  his  life,  —  that  she  shuddered 
at  it,  and  since  then  has  not  been  enthusiastic  about  traveling  in 
Switzerland,  as  she  was  before.  Tinette  too  has  become  frightened 
and  will  not  come  with  us.  So  we  are  coming  alone,  grandmamma 
and  I  ;  Sebastian  will  come  with  us  as  far  as  Ragatz,  then  he  can 
go  back  home. 

"  I  can  hardly  wait  to  come  to  you. 

"  Good-bye,  dear  Heidi.     Grandmamma  sends  you  a  thousand 

g^^^^^^g^-  "Your  true  friend, 

"  Klara." 

When  Peter  heard  these  words  he  ran  away  from 
the  door  post  and  struck  out  right  and  left  so  recklessly 


284  HEIDI 

and  furiously  with  his  rod  that  the  goats,  in  the  greatest 
terror,  all  took  to  flight  and  ran  down  the  mountain, 
making  such  enormous  leaps  as  they  had  seldom  done 
before.  Peter  rushed  after  them  beating  the  air  with 
his  rod,  as  if  he  had  to  vent  his  great  spite  on  some 
invisible  enemy.  This  enemy  was  the  prospect  of 
guests  coming  from  Frankfurt,  and  this  was  what, 
had  so  enraged  him. 

Heidi  was  so  full  of  happiness  and  joy  that  she 
really  had  to  go  to  visit  the  grandmother  the  next  day 
and  tell  her  all  about  it — who  were  coming  from  Frank- 
furt, and  also  who  were  not  coming.  This  was  of  the 
greatest  importance  to  the  grandmother,  for  she  knew 
all  the  people  so  well  and  always  felt  the  greatest 
interest  in  everything  that  concerned  Heidi's  life.  So 
early  on  the  following  afternoon  Heidi  started  ;  for  now 
she  could  go  alone  once  more  to  make  her  visits,  for 
the  sun  was  shining  brightly  again  and  remained  longer 
in  the  sky,  and  there  was  a  fine  mountain  path  over  the 
dry  ground  ;  while  the  joyous  May  wind  blew  behind 
her  and  pushed  her  along  faster  and  faster. 

The  grandmother  was  no  longer  in  bed.  She  was 
sitting  once  more  in  the  corner  spinning.  But  there 
was  an  expression  on  her  face  as  if  she  had  troublesome 
thoughts.  It  had  been  there  since  the  evening  before ; 
and  the  whole  night  long  these  thoughts  had  followed 
her  and  kept  her  from  sleeping.  Peter  had  come  home 
in  the  midst  of  his  great  anger,  and  she  had  understood 
from  his  broken  outcries  that  a  crowd  of  people  from 
Frankfurt  was  coming  up  to  the  Aim  hut.     What  would 


DIHTANT  FRIENDS  HEARD  FROM  285 

happen  afterwards  he  did  not  know ;  but  the  grand- 
mother could  not  help  thinking  about  it,  and  it  was  just 
these  thoughts  that  had  troubled  her  and  kept  her 
from  sleeping. 

Heidi  ran  in,  went  straight  to  the  grandmother,  sat 
down  on  the  little  footstool  which  always  stood  there, 
and  told  her  all  that  she  knew  with  such  eagerness 
that  she  herself  began  to  realize  it  even  more.  But 
all  of  a  sudden  she  stopped  in  the  middle  of  a  sentence 
and  asked  with  concern  :  — 

"What  is  the  matter,  grandmother.-'  don't  you  like 
all  this  a  single  bit  .■* " 

"  Yes,  yes,  Heidi,  I  am  glad  for  you,  because  it  will 
give  you  so  much  pleasure,"  she  answered,  trying  to 
look  a  little  happier. 

"  But,  grandmother,  I  can  see  very  well  that  it 
troubles  you.  Do  you  think  Fraulein  Rottenmeier  will 
come  with  them .-' "  asked  Heidi,  feeling  somewhat 
anxious  herself. 

"No,  no!  it  is  nothing,  it  is  nothing!"  said  the 
grandmother  socfthingly.  "  Let  me  take  your  hand  for 
a  little,  Heidi,  so  that  I  can  feel  that  you  are  still  here. 
It  will  be  a  good  thing  for  you,  even  if  I  don't  live  to 
see  that  day," 

"  I  don't  care  for  what  is  best  for  me,  if  you  are  not 
going  to  live  to  see  it,  grandmother,"  said  Heidi,  so 
decidedly  that  suddenly  a  new  fear  arose  in  the  old 
dame's  mind ;  she  must  take  it  for  granted  that  the 
people  from  Frankfurt  were  coming  to  take  Heidi 
away  ;  for  now  that  she  was  well  once  more  they  would 


286  HEIDI 

surely  want  to  take  her  back  with  them.  This  was  a 
great  grief  to  the  grandmother.  But  she  felt  that  she 
ought  not  to  say  anything  about  it  before  Heidi  ;  she 
would  be  so  sorry  for  her  that  she  would  perhaps  object 
to  going,  and  that  must  not  be.  She  sought  for  some 
remedy,  but  not  long,  for  she  knew  but  one. 

"  I  know  something,  Heidi,"  she  then  said,  "that  will 
make  me  feel  better  and  bring  me  good  thoughts 
again.  Read  me  the  hymn  where  it  begins,  *  God  will 
bring.' " 

Heidi  had  now  become  so  familiar  with  the  old  hymn 
book  that  she  at  once  found  the  place  the  grandmother 
desired  and  read  in  a  clear  voice  :  — 

"  God  will  bring 

Everything  \ 

Into  order  as  is  wholesome  for  thy  soulj 

Thou  shalt  be 

Safe  at  sea, 
Though  the  foaming  billows  wildly  round  thee  roll^ 

"  Yes,  yes,  that  is  exactly  what  I  want  to  hear," 
said  the  grandmother,  relieved,  and  the  expression  of 
distress  disappeared  from  her  face.  Heidi  looked  at 
her  thoughtfully  and  then  said :  — 

"  Grandmother,  does  wholesome  mean  when  every- 
thing is  cured  so  that  one  is  entirely  well  again }  " 

"  Yes,  yes,  that  is  what  it  will  be,"  said  the  grand- 
mother, nodding  in  assent ;  **  and  because  the  dear  Lord 
will  make  it  so ;  we  can  be  sure  how  it  will  come  out. 
Read  it  once  more,  Heidi,  so  that  we  can  fix  it  in  our 
minds  and  not  forget  it." 


DISTANT  FRIENDS  HEARD  FROM  287 

Heidi  read  the  lines  over  again,  and  then  twice 
more,  for  the  thought  of  safety  pleased  her  so  much. 

When  evening  came  and  Heidi  was  climbing  up  the 
mountain  again,  one  little  star  after  another  came  out 
and  sparkled  and  twinkled  down  at  her,  and  it  seemed 
exactly  as  if  each  one  wanted  to  send  a  new  beam  of 
great  delight  into  her  heart,  and  Heidi  had  to  stand 
still  every  moment  and  look  up,  and  when  they  all  in 
every  part  of  the  sky  looked  down  with  still  greater 
delight,  she  had  to  exclaim  quite  loudly :  — 

"  I  know  now,  because  the  dear  Lord  knows  so  well 
what  is  best,  we  can  have  such  joy  and  be  perfectly 
safe ! " 

And  the  little  stars  all  twinkled  and  sparkled  and 
winked  at  Heidi,  until  she  reached  the  hut,  where  her 
grandfather  was  standing,  and  also  gazing  up  at  the  stars, 
for  they  had  not  shone  so  beautifully  for  a  long  time. 

Not  only  the  nights  but  also  the  days  in  this  month 
of  May  were  brighter  and  clearer  than  they  had  been 
for  many  years,  ^nd  the  grandfather  often  looked  out 
in  the  morning  in  surprise  to  see  how  the  sun  was 
coming  up  again  in  a  cloudless  sky,  that  the  sunrise 
was  as  glorious  as  the  sunset,  and  he  would  repeat :  — 

"  It  is  a  remarkably  sunny  year ;  it  will  make  the 
pasturage  very  rich.  Take  care,  leader,  that  your 
leapers  don't  get  too  wild  from  the  good  feed ! " 

Then  Peter  would  swing  his  rod  boldly  in  the  air, 
and  the  answer  was  plainly  written  on  his  face :  — 

"  I  '11  be  a  match  for  them." 

So  the  verdant  May  soon  passed  and  June  came  with 


288  HEIDI 

its  still  warmer  sun  and  long,  long,  light  days,  alluring 
all  the  flowers  on  the  whole  mountain  to  come  out,  so 
that  they  shone  and  glowed  everywhere,  and  filled  the 
air  all  about  with  their  sweet  fragrance.  This  month 
too  was  drawing  to  an  end  when  one  morning  Heidi, 
having  already  finished  her  morning  tasks,  came  run- 
ning out  of  the  hut.  She  hurried  out  under  the  fir 
trees  and  then  a  little  higher  up  to  see  if  the  big  cen- 
taury bush  was  in  bloom,  for  the  little  flowers  were 
enchantingly  lovely  with  the  sun  shining  through  them. 
But  as  Heidi  was  running  around  the  hut  she  suddenly 
screamed  with  all  her  might  so  loud  that  the  uncle  came 
out  of  his  shop,  for  it  was  something  unusual. 

"Grandfather!  grandfather!"  cried  the  child  as  if 
beside  herself.    "  Come  here !  come  here  !     See !  see  !  " 

The  grandfather  came  at  her  call,  and  his  eyes  fol- 
lowed the  excited  child's  outstretched  arm. 

A  strange  procession,  such  as  had  never  been  seen 
there  before,  was  winding  up  the  Aim.  First  came  two 
men  with  a  sedan  chair  in  which  sat  a  young  girl 
wrapped  up  in  ever  so  many  shawls.  Then  came  a 
horse  on  which  sat  a  stately  lady,  who  was  looking  with 
great  interest  in  every  direction  and  talking  eagerly 
with  the  young  guide  walking  by  her  side.  Then  came 
an  empty  wheel  chair,  pushed  by  another  young  fellow, 
for  the  invalid  to  whom  it  belonged  could  be  carried 
more  securely  up  the  steep  mountain  in  the  sedan  chair. 
Last  of  all  walked  a  porter,  who  had  so  many  wraps, 
shawls,  and  furs  piled  up  in  the  basket  on  his  back  that 
they  reached  high  above  his  head. 


DISTANT  FRIENDS  HEARD  FROM 


289 


(( 


There  they  are  !  There  they  are  !  "  screamed  Heidi, 
jumping  up  in  the  air  with  delight.  They  really  were 
coming.  They  came  nearer  and  nearer  and  at  last  they 
were  there.  The  porter  put  the  chair  down  on  the 
ground.     Heidi  ran  to  it  and  the  two  children  greeted 


each  other  with  immense  delight.  Then  the  grand- 
mamma arrived  and  dismounted  from  the  horse.  Heidi 
ran  to  her  and  was  embraced  with  great  tenderness. 
Then  the  grandmamma  turned  toward  the  Aim-Uncle, 
who  had  come  to  welcome  her.  There  was  no  formality 
in  their  greeting,  for  she  knew  him  and  he  knew  her 
.as  well  as  if  they  had  been  acquainted  for  a  long  time. 


290  HEIDI 

As  soon  as  the  first  words  of  greeting  had  been  said, 
the  grandmamma  exclaimed  with  great  enthusiasm  :  — 

"  My  dear  uncle,  what  a  splendid  situation  you  have  ! 
Who  would  have  believed  it !  Many  a  king  might  envy 
you  !  How  well  my  Heidi  looks !  Like  a  little  June 
rose  ! "  she  continued,  drawing  the  child  to  her  and 
stroking  her  fresh  cheeks.  "  How  glorious  it  is  every- 
where all  about !  What  do  you  say,  Klarchen,  my 
child ;   what  do  you  say  ?  " 

Klara  was  looking  around  her  perfectly  enchanted  ; 
she  had  never  seen  anything,  never  imagined  anything 
like  it  in  all  her  life. 

"  Oh,  how  beautiful  it  is  here !  Oh,  how  beautiful 
it  is  here  !  "  she  exclaimed  again  and  again.  "  I  never 
imagined  it.  Oh,  grandmamma,  I  should  like  to  stay 
here ! " 

Meanwhile  the  uncle  had  pushed  along  the  wheel 
chair,  taken  some  shawls  out  of  the  basket,  and  arranged 
them  in  it.     Then  he  stepped  up  to  the  sedan  chair. 

"  If  we  should  put  the  little  daughter  in  her  accus- 
tomed chair  now,  it  would  be  better  for  her ;  the  travel- 
ing chair  is  a  little  hard,"  he  said  ;  and  without  waiting 
for  any  one  to  assist  him,  at  once  lifted  the  little  invalid 
gently  in  his  strong  arms  out  of  the  straw  chair  and 
placed  her  with  the  greatest  care  in  the  soft  seat. 
Then  he  laid  the  shawls  over  her  knees  and  wrapped  her 
feet  as  comfortably  on  the  cushion  as  if  he  had  done 
nothing  else  all  his  life  but  care  for  invalids  who  could 
not  use  their  limbs.  The  grandmamma  looked  at  him 
in  the  greatest  astonishment. 


DISTANT  FRIENDS  HEARD  FROM  291 

Then  she  exclaimed  :  — 

"  My  dear  uncle,  if  I  knew  where  you  learned  to  care 
for  the  sick,  I  would  send  all  the  nurses  I  know  there 
to  take  lessons.     How  is  it  possible  ?  " 

The  uncle  smiled  a  little.  "  It  comes  more  from 
experience  than  from  study,"  he  replied ;  but  in  spite 
of  the  smile  a  look  of  sadness  came  over  his  face.  Out 
of  the  remote  past  before  his  eyes  rose  the  suffering 
face  of  a  man  who  used  to  sit  wrapped  up  in  a  chair 
just  like  this,  and  was  so  crippled  that  he  could  hardly 
use  a  limb.  It  was  his  captain,  whom  he  had  found 
lying  on  the  ground  after  a  fierce  battle  in  Sicily, 
and  had  carried  off  the  field ;  and  from  that  time  the 
captain  would  allow  no  other  nurse  around  him,  and 
would  never  let  him  out  of  his  sight,  until  his  great 
sufferings  came  to  an  end.  The  uncle  saw  his  sick 
friend  before  him  again;  his  only  thought  now  was 
that  it  would  be  his  duty  to  care  for  sick  Klara  and 
show  her  all  those  comforting  attentions  he  under- 
stood so  well. 

The  sky  spread  deep  blue  and  cloudless  above  the 
hut  and  the  fir  trees  and  high  above  the  lofty  cliffs  which 
towered  up  so  gray  and  sparkling.  Klara  could  not  look 
around  enough ;  she  was  perfectly  fascinated  with  all 
that  she  saw. 

"  Oh,  Heidi,  if  I  could  only  go  around  with  you,  about 
the  hut  and  under  the  fir  trees  !  "  she  exclaimed  long- 
ingly. "  If  I  could  go  with  you  to  look  at  all  the  things 
I  have  heard  so  much  about  and  have  n't  as  yet  seen  ! " 

Then  Heidi  made  a  great  effort  and  succeeded  in 


292  HEIDI 

rolling  the  chair  smoothly  over  the  dry,  grassy  ground 
under  the  fir  trees.  Here  she  paused.  Klara  had 
never  seen  anything  in  her  life  like  the  tall  old  fir  trees 
whose  long,  wide-spreading  branches  grew  down  to  the 
ground  and  became  larger  and  thicker  there.  The 
grandmamma,  who  had  followed  the  children,  also  stood 
still  in  great  admiration.  She  could  not  tell  which  was 
the  more  beautiful,  the  full  roaring  tops  of  the  ancient 
trees,  high  up  in  the  blue  sky,  or  their  straight,  strong 
trunks,  which  with  their  mighty  branches  could  tell  of 
so  many,  many  years  while  they  had  been  standing 
there  and  looking  down  into  the  valley  where  men  came 
and  went  and  everything  else  was  constantly  changing, 
but  they  always  remained  the  same. 

Meanwhile,  Heidi  pushed  the  wheel  chair  in  front  of 
the  goat-shed  and  opened  the  little  door  wide,  so  that 
Klara  could  see  everything  inside.  There  was  really 
not  much  to  see  now,  for  the  goats  were  not  at  home. 
Klara  called  back  quite  regretfully  :  — 

"  Oh,  grandmamma,  if  I  could  just  wait  for  Schwanli 
and  Barli  and  all  the  other  goats,  and  Peter !  I  can 
never  see  them  all  if  we  always  have  to  go  away  as 
early  as  you  said  ;  it  is  such  a  shame  !  " 

"  Dear  child,  we  will  enjoy  all  the  beautiful  things 
that  are  here,  and  not  think  about  those  that  are  want- 
ing," was  the  grandmamma's  advice,  as  she  followed 
the  chair,  which  Heidi  was  now  pushing  back. 

"  Oh,  the  flowers  !  "  exclaimed  Klara  ;  "whole  bushes 
of  fine  red  flowers,  and  all  the  nodding  bluebells  !  Oh, 
if  I  could  only  go  and  get  some  !  " 


DISTANT  FklENDS  HEARD  FROM  293 

Heidi  immediately  ran  and  brought  back  to  her  a 
great  bunch  of  them. 

"  But  this  is  nothing,  Klara,"  she  said,  laying  the 
flowers  in  her  lap.  "  If  you  could  come  up  to  the  pas- 
ture with  us  once,  then  you  would  see  something  !  In 
one  place  there  are  so  many,  many  bushes  of  red  cen- 
tauries and  ever  so  many  more  bluebells  than  here,  and 
so  many  thousand  bright  yellow  wild  roses  that  it 
looks  as  if  the  ground  was  shining  with  pure  gold. 
And  then  there  are  some  with  large  leaves,  which  my 
grandfather  says  are  called  heliopsis,  and,  besides,  the 
brown  ones,  you  know,  with  little  round  heads,  which 
smell  so  good, — and  it  is  so  beautiful!  If  you  once 
sit  down  there,  you  can  never  get  up  again,  it  is  so 
lovely ! " 

Heidi's  eyes  sparkled  with  longing  to  see  what  she 
described,  and  Klara  was  so  excited  by  it  that  out  of 
her  gentle  blue  eyes  there  shone  a  complete  reflection 
of  Heidi's  fiery  enthusiasm. 

"  Oh,  grandmamma,  can  I  go  up  there  .-*  Do  you  think 
I  could  go  so  high  .'' "  she  asked  eagerly.  "  Oh,  if  I 
could  only  go,  Heidi,  and  climb  around  everywhere  on 
the  mountain  with  you  !  " 

"  I  will  push  you,"  said  Heidi  soothingly;  and  to  show 
how  easily  it  went  she  took  such  a  run  around  the  cor- 
ner that  the  chair  almost  ran  away  from  her  down  the 
mountain.  But  her  grandfather  was  standing  near  and 
stopped  its  course  just  in  time. 

During  their  visit  to  the  fir  trees  the  grandfather  had 
not  been  idle.     The  table  and  necessary  chairs  were 


294  HEIDI 

standing  by  the  bench  in  front  of  the  hut  and  every- 
thing was  ready  ;  the  good  dinner  was  still  steaming 
in  the  kettle  and  roasting  on  the  big  fork  over  the 
fire  inside  the  hut.  It  was  not  long  before  the  grand- 
father had  everything  on  the  table  and  the  whole  com- 
pany sat  down  gladly  to  the  meal. 

The  grandmamma  was  perfectly  enchanted  at  this 
dining-room,  from  which  one  could  see  far,  far  down  into 
the  valley  and  above  all  the  mountains  into  the  blue 
sky.  A  cool,  mild  breeze  gently  fanned  the  faces  of  the 
guests  and  rustled  as  pleasantly  in  the  fir  trees  as  if  it 
had  been  especially  ordered  music  for  the  feast, 

*'  Nothing  like  this  has  ever  happened  to  me.  It  is 
really  glorious ! "  exclaimed  the  grandmamma  again 
and  again.  "  But  what  do  I  see }  "  she  added  in  the 
greatest  surprise.  "  I  believe  you  are  taking  a  second 
piece  of  toasted  cheese,  Klarchen  !  " 

Sure  enough,  a  second  golden  shining  piece  of  cheese 
lay  on  Klara's  slice  of  bread. 

"  Oh,  it  tasted  so  good,  grandmamma,  —  better  than 
everything  on  the  table  at  Ragatz,"  asserted  Klara, 
taking  the  appetizing  dish  with  great  relish. 

"  Eat  away  !  Eat  away  !  "  said  the  Aim-Uncle,  well 
pleased.  "  It  is  our  mountain  air,  which  succeeds  when 
the  cook  fails." 

So  the  happy  meal  went  on.  The  grandmamma  and 
the  Aim-Uncle  took  a  great  liking  to  each  other,  and 
their  conversation  became  more  and  more  lively.  They 
agreed  in  all  their  opinions  about  men  and  things  and 
the  progress  of  the  world  as  well  as  if  they  had  been 


DISTANT  FRIENDS  HEARD  FROM  295 

friends  for  years.  Thus  the  time  passed  until  the 
grandmamma  suddenly  looked  toward  the  west  and 
said :  — 

"  We  must  soon  be  getting  ready,  Klarchen  ;  the  sun 
is  already  going  down ;  the  people  will  be  back  with 
the  horse  and  the  chair," 

Immediately  an  expression  of  sadness  came  over 
Klara's  happy  face  and  she  asked  urgently:  — 

*'  Oh,  grandmamma,  just  one  hour  more,  or  two  !  We 
haven't  seen  the  hut  yet,  or  Heidi's  bed  and  all  their 
other  arrangements.  Oh,  if  the  day  were  only  ten  hours 
longer !  " 

••  That  is  not  possible,"  said  the  grandmamma ;  but 
she  too  wanted  to  see  the  hut.  So  they  rose  at  once 
from  the  table,  and  the  uncle  directed  the  chair  with 
steady  hand  to  the  door.  But  here  it  would  go  no 
farther ;  the  chair  was  much  too  wide  to  go  through  the 
opening.  The  uncle  did  not  stop  long  to  consider.  He 
lifted  Klara  out  and  carried  her  in  his  strong  arms  into 
the  hut. 

The  grandmamma  went  back  and  forth  looking  care- 
fully at  all  the  furnishings,  and  was  greatly  amused 
at  the  domestic  contrivances  which  were  so  prettily 
arranged  and  well  ordered. 

"  That  is  surely  your  bed  up  above  there,  Heidi,  is 
it  not } "  she  then  asked,  and  straightway,  without  any 
timidity,  climbed  the  little  ladder  leading  to  the  hayloft. 

"  Oh,  how  sweet  it  smells  !  It  must  be  a  healthful 
sleeping  room !  "  and  the  grandmamma  went  to  the 
window  and  peeped  through. 


296  HETDI 

The  grandfather  followed  with  Klara  in  his  arms,  and 
Heidi  came  on  behind. 

They  then  all  stood  around  Heidi's  beautifully  made 
hay  bed,  and  the  grandmamma  looked  at  it  quite  crit- 
ically, every  now  and  then  drawing  in  with  delight 
deep  breaths  of  the  spicy  fragrance  of  the  new  hay. 
Klara  was  perfectly  charmed  with  Heidi's  sleeping 
place. 

'•  Oh,  Heidi,  what  a  jolly  place  you  have  here  !  From 
your  bed  you  can  see  straight  out  into  the  sky,  and 
you  have  such  a  lovely  odor  around  you,  and  you  can 
hear  the  fir  trees  roar  outside.  Oh,  I  have  never  seen 
such  a  jolly,  pleasant  sleeping  room  before  !  " 

The  uncle  then  looked  over  at  the  grandmamma. 

"I  have  an  idea,"  he  said,  "if  your  grandmamma 
will  listen  to  me  and  not  be  opposed  to  the  plan.  I 
think  if  we  could  keep  the  daughter  up  here  a  little 
while  she  would  gain  new  strength.  You  have  brought 
so  many  shawls  and  wraps  out  of  which  we  could 
arrange  an  entirely  separate  soft  bed,  and  your  grand- 
mamma need  have  no  anxiety  about  the  care  of  the 
little  daughter ;  that  I  will  undertake  myself." 

Klara  and  Heidi  both  shouted  with  joy  like  two 
escaped  birds,  and  the  grandmamma's  face  lighted  up 
with  sunshine. 

"  My  dear  uncle,  you  are  a  wonderful  man ! "  she 
exclaimed.  "  How  did  you  know  what  I  was  just 
thinking  about .''  I  was  saying  to  myself:  'Wouldn't  a 
stay  up  here  give  the  child  especial  strength  ?  But  the 
nursing !   the  care !   the  inconvenience  to  the  host ! ' 


DISTANT  FRIENDS  HEARD  FROM  297 

And  here  you  speak  of  it  as  if  it  would  be  nothing  at 
all,  I  must  thank  you,  my  dear  uncle,  I  must  thank  you 
with  my  whole  heart !  "  and  the  grandmamma  shook 
the  uncle's  hand  again  and  again,  and  the  uncle  also 
shook  hers  with  great  delight. 

The  uncle  immediately  began  to  carry  out  his  plan. 
He  carried  Klara  back  to  her  chair  in  front  of  the  hut ; 
Heidi  followed,  not  knowing  how  high  she  wanted  to 
jump  in  her  delight.  Then  he  piled  up  all  the  shawls 
and  fur  robes  in  his  arms  and  said,  smiling  with  satis- 
faction :  — 

"  It  is  a  good  thing  that  grandmamma  brought  enough 
things  for  a  winter  campaign  ;  we  can  use  them." 

"  My  dear  uncle,"  she  replied,  approaching  briskly, 
"foresight  is  an  excellent  virtue,  and  protection  from 
many  an  evil.  If  one  escapes  storm  and  wind  and  vio- 
lent rains  in  traveling  over  your  mountains,  one  may  be 
thankful ;  and  so  we  are,  and  my  wraps  may  be  useful 
yet ;  about  that  we  are  agreed," 

During  this  little  conversation  the  two  climbed  up 
to  the  hayloft  and  began  to  spread  the  shawls,  one 
after  another,  over  the  bed.  There  were  so  many  that 
the  bed  finally  looked  like  a  little  fortress, 

"Now  let  a  single  wisp  of  hay  stick  through  if  it 
can,"  said  the  grandmamma,  while  she  pressed  her  hand 
on  all  sides ;  but  the  soft  wall  was  so  impenetrable  that 
nothing  really  could  stick  through.  Then  she  climbed 
down  the  ladder  quite  satisfied  and  went  out  to  the 
children,  who  were  sitting  close  together  with  beaming 
faces,  and  planning  what  they  would  do  from  morning 


298  HEIDI 

till  night,  as  long  as  Klara  stayed  on  the  mountain. 
But  how  long  would  that  be  ?  That  was  now  the  great 
question,  which  was  at  once  laid  before  the  grand- 
mamma. She  said  the  grandfather  knew  best  about 
that ;  they  must  ask  him.  As  he  happened  along  just 
then  the  question  was  put  to  him,  and  he  said  he 
thought  that  in  about  four  weeks  it  would  be  safe  to 
judge  whether  the  mountain  air  would  do  its  duty  by 
the  little  daughter  or  not.  Then  the  children  shouted 
aloud,  for  the  prospect  of  being  together  so  long  sur- 
passed all  their  expectations. 

The  porters  with  the  chair  and  the  guide  with  the 
horse  were  now  seen  coming  up  the  mountain.  The 
first  were  allowed  to  turn  around  again  immediately. 

When  the  grandmamma  was  preparing  to  mount  the 
horse,  Klara  exclaimed  cheerfully  :  — 

"  Oh,  grandmamma,  we  won't  say  farewell,  if  you  are 
going  away,  for  you  will  come  back  every  little  while  to 
visit  us  on  the  mountain,  to  see  what  we  are  doing ;  and 
that  will  be  so  delightful,  won't  it,  Heidi } " 

Heidi,  who  had  had  one  pleasure  after  another  that 
day,  could  only  express  her  assent  by  jumping  high  with 
delight. 

Then  the  grandmamma  mounted  the  steady  beast, 
and  the  uncle  took  the  bridle  and  led  the  horse  safely 
down  the  steep  mountain.  Although  the  grandmamma 
tried  not  to  have  him  go  so  far,  it  was  of  no  use ;  the 
uncle  explained  that  he  was  anxious  to  accompany  her 
as  far  as  Dorfli,  for  the  mountain  was  so  steep  and  the 
ride  not  free  from  danger. 


DISTANT  FRIENDS  HEARD   FROM  299 

The  grandmamma  thought  that  now  she  was  by  her- 
self she  would  not  stay  in  Dorfli,  where  it  was  lonely. 
She  would  return  to  Ragatz  and  take  the  journey  up 
the  mountain  occasionally  from  there. 

Before  the  uncle  returned,  Peter  came  along  with 
his  goats.  When  they  noticed  Heidi  they  all  rushed 
toward  her ;  in  a  moment  Klara  in  her  chair,  together 
with  Heidi,  was  in  the  midst  of  the  flock,  and  some 
one  goat  was  always  crowding  and  pushing  to  see  over 
another,  and  each  was  immediately  called  and  presented 
by  Heidi  to  Klara. 

So  it  happened  that  in  a  very  short  time  Klara  had 
made  the  long-wished-for  acquaintance  with  Schnee- 
hopli,  the  jolly  Distelfinck,  the  grandfather's  clean  goats, 
and  all  the  rest,  up  to  the  big  Turk.  But  Peter  mean- 
while stood  aside  and  threw  occasional  threatening 
glances  at  happy  Klara. 

When  the  children  both  called  out  pleasantly  to  him : 
"  Good-night,  Peter !  "  he  made  no  reply,  but  raised 
his  rod  angrily  in  the  air,  as  if  he  would  like  to  beat 
them  to  pieces.  Then  he  ran  away,  with  his  followers 
after  him. 

Now  came  an  end  to  all  the  lovely  things  Klara  had 
seen  that  day  on  the  mountain. 

When  she  lay  on  her  great  soft  bed  in  the  hayloft, 
to  which  Heidi  had  also  climbed,  she  looked  through 
the  round,  open  window,  out  at  the  twinkling  stars,  and, 
completely  charmed,  exclaimed  :  — 

"  Oh,  Heidi,  see,  it  is  just  as  if  we  were  riding  in  the 
sky  in  a  high  carriage !  "    . 


300  HEIDI 

"  Yes,  and  do  you  know  why  the  stars  are  so  full  of 
joy,  and  wink  at  us  so  with  their  eyes?  "  asked  Heidi. 

"  No,  I  don't  know ;  what  do  you  think  about  it  ?  " 
asked  Klara. 

"  Because  they  see  up  in  heaven  how  well  the  dear 
Lord  directs  everything  for  people,  so  that  they  need 
have  no  anxiety  and  can  be  safe,  because  everything 
will  happen  for  the  best.  That  delights  them  so ;  see 
how  they  wink,  that  we  may  be  happy  too  !  But  do 
you  know,  Klara,  we  must  not  forget  our  prayers  ;  we 
must  ask  the  dear  Lord  to  think  of  us,  when  he  is 
directing  everything  so  well,  that  we  may  always  be 
safe  and  never  be  afraid  of  anything." 

So  the  children  sat  up  in  bed  and  said  their  evening 
prayer.  Then  Heidi  laid  her  head  on  her  round  arm 
and  was  asleep  in  a  moment.  But  Klara  stayed  awake 
for  a  long  time,  for  she  had  never  seen  anything  so 
wonderful  in  her  life  as  this  sleeping  room  in  the  star- 
light. 

Moreover  she  had  hardly  ever  seen  the  stars,  for  she 
never  went  outside  the  house  at  night,  and  indoors  the 
thick  curtains  were  drawn  long  before  the  stars  came 
out.  Now  whenever  she  closed  her  eyes  she  had  to 
open  them  again  once  more  to  see  if  the  two  big  bright 
stars  were  still  shining  in  and  winking  as  remarkably 
as  Heidi  had  said.  And  it  was  always  so,  and  Klara 
could  not  look  enough  at  their  twinkling  and  sparkling, 
until  at  last  her  eyes  closed  of  themselves,  and  in  her 
dreams  she  still  saw  the  two  big  shining  stars. 


CHAPTER   VII 

WHAT    FURTHER   HAPPENED    ON   THE   MOUNTAIN 

The  sun  was  just  coming  up  behind  the  crags  and 
casting  its  golden  beams  over  the  hut  and  down  across 
the  valley.  The  Aim-Uncle  had  been  silently  and  at- 
tentively watching,  as  he  did  every  morning,  how  all 
around  on  the  heights  and  in  the  valley  the  light  mists 
were  lifting,  and  the  landscape  appeared  out  of  the  twi- 
light shadows  and  awoke  to  the  new  day. 

Brighter  and  brighter  grew  the  light  morning  clouds 
until  the  sun  came  out  in  all  its  glory,  and  rocks  and 
woods  and  hilltops  were  bathed  in  the  golden  light. 

Then  the  uncle  went  back  into  his  hut  and  climbed 
softly  up  the  little  ladder.  Klara  had  just  awakened, 
and  was  gazing  in  the  greatest  amazement  at  the  bright 
sunbeams,  which  came  in  through  the  round  window 
and  glanced  and  danced  on  her  bed.  She  did  not  know 
what  she  was  looking  at  or  where  she  was.  Then  she 
looked  at  Heidi,  sleeping  beside  her,  and  the  grand- 
father's friendly  voice  sounded,  asking:  — 

"Did  you  sleep  well.'*     Are  you  tired .-•" 

Klara  assured  him  that  she  was  not  tired,  and  that 
after  she  was  once  asleep  she  did  not  wake  up  again  all 
night.  This  pleased  the  grandfather,  and  he  immedi- 
ately set  to  work  and  cared  for  Klara  as  well  and  under- 

3°* 


302  HEIDI 

standingly  as  if  it  had  always  been  his  profession  to 
care  for  sick  children  and  make  them  comfortable. 

By  this  time  Heidi  had  opened  her  eyes  and  was 
surprised  to  see  that  her  grandfather  had  already  fin- 
ished Klara's  toilet  and  was  carrying  her  away  in  his 
arms.  She  felt  that  she  must  be  with  them.  She 
dressed  as  quick  as  lightning ;  then  went  down  the  lad- 
der and  was  out  at  the  door  and  stood  looking  in  the 
greatest  surprise  at  what  her  grandfather  had  been 
doing  further.  The  evening  before,  when  the  children 
had  gone  to  bed  in  the  loft,  he  had  planned  how  to 
bring  the  wide  rolling  chair  under  cover.  The  door  of 
the  hut  was  much  too  small  to  allow  it  to  enter.  Then 
a  thought  came  to  him.  Behind  the  shop  he  loosened 
two  large  boards  and  thus  formed  a  wide  opening. 
The  chair  was  pushed  in,  and  then  the  planks  were  put 
back  in  their  places,  though  they  were  not  fastened. 

Heidi  came  along  just  as  her  grandfather  was  putting 
Klara  in  her  chair,  for  he  had  taken  away  the  boards  and 
was  coming  out  of  the  shop  with  her  into  the  morning 
sunshine.  He  left  the  chair  standing  in  a  safe  place 
and  went  to  the  goat-shed.      Heidi  ran  to  Klara's  side. 

The  cool  morning  breeze  blew  around  the  children's 
faces,  and  the  spicy  fragrance  from  the  fir  trees  came 
down  with  every  new  gust  of  wind.  Klara  drew  in 
deep  breaths  and  leaned  back  in  her  chair  with  a  feel- 
ing of  health  such  as  she  had  never  known  before. 

Never  in  her  life  had  she  breathed  in  the  fresh  morn- 
ing air  outdoors  under  the  open  sky,  and  now  the  pure 
mountain  breeze  blew  around  her  so  cool  and  refresh- 


WHAT  HAPPENED    ON   THE   MOUNTAIN  303 

ing  that  every  breath  was  a  pleasure.  And  then  there 
was  the  bright,  sweet  sunshine,  which  was  not  at  all 
hot  up  there,  and  lay  so  lovely  and  warm  on  her  hands  and 
on  the  dry,  grassy  earth  at  her  feet.  Klara  had  never 
imagined  that  it  could  be  like  this  on  the  mountain. 

"  Oh,  Heidi,  if  only  I  could  always,  always  stay  up 
here  with  you !  "  she  said,  turning  with  delight  first  one 
way  and  then  another  in  her  chair,  to  take  in  the  air 
and  sunshine  from  every  side. 

"Now  you  see  it  is  just  as  I  told  you,"  replied 
Heidi,  much  pleased :  *'  that  here  at  my  -grandfather's 
on  the  Aim  is  the  loveliest  spot  in  the  whole  world." 

Just  then  the  grandfather  came  out  of  the  shed  to 
the  children.  He  brought  two  bowls  full  of  foaming, 
snow-white  milk,  and  handed  one  to  Klara  and  the 
other  to  Heidi. 

"This  will  do  the  little  daughter  good,"  he  said, 
nodding  to  Klara ;  "  it  is  from  Schwanli  and  will  make 
you  strong.     To  your  good  health  !     Drink  away  !  " 

Klara  had  nevpr  tasted  goat's  milk,  so  she  had  to 
smell  of  it  a  little  first,  to  see  what  it  was  like.  But 
when  she  saw  how  eagerly  Heidi  drank  down  her  milk 
without  stopping  once,  —  it  tasted  so  wonderfully  good 
to  her,  —  then  Klara  began  and  drank  and  drank,  and 
really  it  was  as  sweet  and  nourishing  as  if  there  were 
sugar  and  cinnamon  in  it,  and  Klara  drank  until  there 
was. nothing  left  in  the  bowl. 

"  To-morrow  we  will  take  two,"  said  the  grandfather, 
who  was  well  satisfied  to  see  how  Klara  followed 
Heidi's  example. 


3(H 


Nkwr 


Peter  now  appeared  with  his  flock,  and  while  Heidi 
was  surrounded  by  the  goats,  giving  their  morning 
greeting  on   every  hand,  the   uncle  took   Peter  aside 


that  he  might  hear  what  he  had  to  say  to  him,  for .  the 
goats  kept  up  a  great  bleating,  each  one  trying  to  outdo 
the  other  in  expressing  its  delight  and  affection,  as 
soon  as  Heidi  was  with  them. 


WHAT  HAPPENED  ON   THE  MOUNTAIN  305 

"Now  listen  and  mind,"  said  the  uncle.  "From 
to-day  on  let  Schwanli  do  as  she  likes.  She  knows 
where  the  best  feed  is  ;  so  if  she  wants  to  go  up,  follow 
her.  It  will  be  good  for  the  others  too  ;  and  if  she  wants 
to  go  higher  than  you  usually  go  with  her,  follow  on 
and  don't  keep  her  back  —  do  you  hear }  If  you  have  to 
climb  a  little,  it  won't  do  any  harm  ;  go  wherever  she 
likes,  for  in  this  respect  she  has  more  sense  than  you, 
and  she  must  have  the  very  best  feed,  so  that  she  will 
give  splendid  milk.  Why  are  you  looking  over  there 
as  if  you  would  like  to  i;  wallow  somebody }  No  one  is 
in  your  way.  There,  now,  go  on,  and  remember  what 
I  have  told  you  !  " 

Peter  was  accustomed  to  follow  the  uncle's  orders. 
He  immediately  started  along  •  but  it  was  plain  to  be 
seen  that  something  disturbed  iMm,  for  he  kept  turning 
his  head  and  rolling  his  eyes.  The  goats  followed  and 
pushed  Heidi  along  with  them  for  a  little  distance. 
Peter  approved  of  this. 

"  You  must  come  too,"  he  called  out  threateningly ; 
"you  must  come  too,  if  I  have  to  go  after  Schwanli." 

"No,  I  cannot,"  Heidi  called  back;  "and  I  cannot 
come  with  you  for  a  long,  long  time,  as  long  as  Klara 
is  with  us.  But  grandfather  has  promised  that  some 
day  we  may  come  up  together." 

With  these  words  Heidi  had  torn  herself  away  from 
the  goats  and  now  ran  back  to  Klara.  Then  Peter 
shook  both  fists  so  threateningly  toward  the  wheel 
chair  that  the  goats  sprang  to  one  side ;  but  he  at  once 
sprang  after  them  and,  without  stopping,  went  on  up  a 


306  HEIDI 

long  distance  until  he  was  out  of  sight,  for  he  thought 
the  uncle  might  have  seen  him,  and  he  preferred  not  to 
know  what  sort  of  an  impression  his  gestures  made  on 
the  uncle. 

Klara  and  Heidi  had  planned  so  much  for  that  day 
that  they  did  not  know  where  to  begin.  Heidi  proposed 
to  write  a  letter  to  the  grandmamma,  for  the  good  lady 
for  her  part  was  not  perfectly  sure  that  it  would  please 
Klara  up  there  for  any  length  of  time,  or  indeed  be 
good  for  her  health ;  so  she  had  made  the  children 
promise  to  write  her  a  letter  gvery  day,  and  to  tell  her 
everything  that  happened.  In  this  way  the  grand- 
mamma would  know  when  r^he  was  needed  on  the  Aim, 
and  until  then  could  stay  quietly  where  she  was. 

"  Must  we  go  into  the  house  to  write  }  "  asked  Klara, 
who  was  willing  to  senri  a  report  to  her  grandmamma, 
but  it  was  so  pleasant  outdoors  that  she  did  not  want  to 
go  in. 

Heidi  knew  how  to  manage.  In  a  twinkling  she  ran 
into  the  hut  and  came  back  laden  with  all  her  school 
materials  and  a  three-legged  stool.  She  laid  her  reader 
and  writing  book  in  Klara's  lap,  so  that  she  could  write 
on  them,  and  seated  herself  on  the  little  stool  by  the 
bench,  and  then  they  began  to  tell  the  grandmamma 
what  had  happened.  But  after  every  sentence  she 
wrote  Klara  had  to  lay  her  pencil  down  and  look  around 
her.  It  was  quite  too  lovely  !  The  wind  was  no  longer 
so  cool  as  it  had  been ;  it  hovered  around  their  faces, 
gently  fanning  them,  and  whispered  softly  up  in  the  fir 
trees.     Merry  little  insects  danced  and  hummed  in  the 


WHAT  HAPPENED   ON   THE  MOUNTAIN  307 

clear  air,  and  a  great  stillness  lay  over  all  the  sunny 
landscape.  The  lofty,  rocky  peaks  looked  down  so  big 
and  still,  and  the  whole  wide  valley  below  lay  wrapt  in 
quiet  peacefulness.  Only  now  and  then  the  merry 
shouts  of  some  shepherd  boy  sounded  through  the  air, 
and  the  echo  gave  back  the  tones  softly  from  the  crags. 

The  morning  passed,  the  children  knew  not  how, 
and  the  grandfather  came  with  the  steaming  bowls,  for 
he  said  they  must  stay  outdoors  with  the  little  daughter 
as  long  as  there  was  a  ray  of  light  in  the  sky.  So  the 
dinner,  as  on  the  previous  day,  was  placed  before 
the  hut  and  taken  with  enjoyment.  Then  Heidi  rolled 
Klara  in  her  chair  out  under  the  fir  trees,  for  the  chil- 
dren had  decided  that  they  would  spend  the  afternoon 
sitting  in  the  lovely  shade  and  tell  each  other  what 
had  happened  since  Heidi  left  Frankfurt.  Although 
everything  had  gone  on  in  the  usual  way,  still  Klara 
had  all  sorts  of  things  to  tell  about  the  people  whom 
Heidi  knew  so  well,  living  in  the  Sesemann  house. 

So  the  children  sat  together  under  the  old  fir  trees, 
and  the  more  eagerly  they  talked  the  louder  whistled 
the  birds  up  in  the  branches,  for  the  chatting  below 
pleased  them  and  they  were  anxious  to  take  part  in  it. 
Thus  the  time  passed  and  before  they  knew  it  evening 
had  come,  and  the  army  of  goats  came  rushing  down, 
their  leader  behind  them,  with  wrinkled  brow  and  anger 
in  his  manner. 

"  Good-night,  Peter  !  '■  Heidi  called  out  to  him,  when 
she  saw  that  he  had  no  idea  of  stopping. 

"  Good-night,  Peter !  "  called  out  Klara  pleasantly. 


308  HEIDI 

He  gave  no  reply  and,  angrily  snorting,  drove  on  the 
goats. 

When  Klara  saw  the  grandfather  lead  pretty  Schwanli 
to  the  stall  to  be  milked,  she  was  all  at  once  seized  with 
such  a  longing  for  the  spicy  milk  that  she  could  hardly 
wait  until  he  came  out  with  it.  She  was  surprised  at 
herself. 

"It  is  very  strange,  Heidi,"  she  said ;  "as  long  as  I 
can  remember,  I  have  eaten  only  because  I  had  to,  and 
everything  I  took  tasted  like  cod-liver  oil,  and  I  have 
thought  a  thousand  times  :  '  If  only  I  never  had  to  eat !' 
and  now  I  can  hardly  wait  until  your  grandfather  comes 
with  the  milk." 

"  Yes,  I  know  what  that  is,"  replied  Heidi  quite 
understandingly,  for  she  thought  of  the  day  in  Frank- 
furt when  everything  stuck  in  her  throat  and  would  not 
go  down.  But  Klara  could  not  see  how  it  was.  In  all 
her  life  long  she  had  never  eaten  outdoors  in  the  fresh 
air,  as  she  had  done  to-day,  and  never  in  this  high, 
invigorating  mountain  air.  '  > 

When  the  grandfather  came  with  his  little  bowls, 
Klara  seized  hers  quickly,  thanking  him  for  it,  drank 
it  eagerly,  and  this  time  finished  before  Heidi. 

"  May  I  have  a  little  more  .■* "  she  asked,  holding  out 
her  bowl  to  the  grandfather. 

He  nodded,  much  pleased,  took  Heidi's  bowl  also,  and 
went  back  to  the  hut.  When  he  came  out  again,  he 
brought  with  each  bowl  a  thick  cover,  made  of  different 
material  from  what  covers  are  usually  made. 

In  the  afternoon  the  grandfather  had  taken  a  walk 


WHAT  HAPPEN-ED   ON  THE  MOUNTAIN  309 

to  the  green  Maiensass  to  the  cow-keeper's  hut  where 
they  made  sweet,  bright,  yellow  butter.  He  had 
brought  home  from  there  a  lovely  round  ball.  Now  he 
had  taken  two  nice  slices  of  bread  and  spread  them 
thick  with  the  sweet  butter.  These  the  children  were 
going  to  have  for  their  supper.  Both  immediately  took 
such  deep  bites  of  the  appetizing  slices  that  the  grand- 
father stood  still  to  see  them  continue,  for  it  pleased 
him. 

Later,  when  Klara  was  again  gazing  at  the  sparkling 
stars  from  her  bed,  she  followed  Heidi's  example  ;  her 
eyes  closed  immediately,  and  such  a  sound,  healthful 
sleep  came  over  her  as  she  had  never  known  before. 

The  following  day  passed  in  the  same  delightful  way, 
and  also  the  next,  and  then  came  a  great  surprise  for 
the  children.  Two  strong  porters  came  climbing  up 
the  mountain,  each  one  carrying  on  his  back  a  high 
bed,  all  arranged  in  the  bedstead,  both  covered  exactly 
alike  with  a  white  coverlet,  clean  and  brand-new.  The 
men  also  brought  a  letter  from  the  grandmamma.  It 
said  that  these  "beds  were  for  Klara  and  Heidi,  that  the 
hay  beds  were  to  be  taken  away,  and  that  from  this 
time  on  Heidi  must  sleep  in  a  regular  bed.  In  the 
winter  one  of  them  must  be  sent  down  to  Dorfli,  but 
the  other  was  to  remain  up  there,  so  that  Klara  would 
always  find  it,  if  she  came  back.  Then  the  grand- 
mamma praised  the  children  on  account  of  their  long 
letters  and  urged  them  to  continue  writing  every  day, 
so  that  she  might  always  know  everything  about  them 
as  if,  well  —  as  if  she  were  with  them. 


310  HEIDI 

The  grandfather  went  into  the  hut,  threw  the  con- 
tents of  Heidi's  bed  on  the  big  heap  of  hay,  and  laid 
away  the  covers.  Then  he  came  back  to  help  the  men 
carry  the  two  beds  up  into  the  loft.  He  pushed  them 
close  together  so  that  the  view  through  the  window 
might  be  the  same  from  both  pillows,  for  he  knew  what 
delight  the  children  took  in  the  morning  and  evening 
light  as  it  came  in  there. 

Meanwhile  the  grandmamma  stayed  down  in  Ragatz 
and  was  highly  delighted  with  the  excellent  reports 
which  reached  her  every  day  from  the  Aim. 

Klara  became  more  and  more  charmed  with  her  new 
life,  and  she  could  not  say  enough  about  the  grand- 
father's kindness  and  thoughtful  care  of  her,  and  how 
merry  and  amusing  Heidi  was,  —  much  more  so  than  in 
Frankfurt, — and  how  every  morning  her  first  thought 
when  she  awoke  was  :  — 

"  Oh,  praise  the  Lord  ;  I  am  still  on  the  Aim  !  '* 

This  remarkably  delightful  news  was  a  fresh  joy  to 
the  grandmamma  every  day.  She  found  also  that  under 
the  circumstances  she  could  defer  her  visit  to  the  Aim 
a  little  longer,  which  she  was  not  sorry  for,  since  the 
ride  up  the  steep  mountain  and  down  again  was  rather 
difficult  for  her. 

The  grandfather  must  have  felt  a  remarkable  interest 
in  his  little  charge,  for  not  a  day  passed  when  he  did 
not  think  of  something  new  to  strengthen  her.  Every 
afternoon  now  he  took  a  walk  up  among  the  rocks, 
higher  and  higher,  and  every  time  he  brought  back  a 
little  bundle,  which  scented  the  air  for  a  long  distance 


WHAT  HAPPENED   ON  THE  MOUNTAIN  311 

like  spicy  pinks  and  thyme,  and  attracted  the  goats  at 
evening,  so  that  they  all  began  to  bleat  and  leap  and 
tried  to  push  all  together  into  the  shed  where  the  plants 
lay,  for  they  knew  the  odor  well.  But  the  uncle  had 
made  the  door  fast,  because  he  had  not  climbed  high  up 
on  the  rocks  after  the  rare  plants,  that  the  whole,  crowd 
of  goats  might  get  a  good  meal  without  any  trouble. 
The  herbs  were  all  intended  for  Schwanli,  that  she 
might  give  still  richer  milk.  It  was  plain  to  see  how 
this  extraordinary  care  affected  her,  for  she  tossed  her 
head  in  the  air  more  and  more  vigorously,  and,  besides, 
her  eyes  flashed  fire. 

It  was  now  the  third  week  since  Klara  had  come  up 
on  the  mountain.  For  several  days  when  the  grand- 
father had  brought  her  down  in  the  morning  to  place 
her  in  her  chair,  he  had  said :  — 

"  Will  the  little  daughter  not  try  just  once  to  stand 
on  the  ground  a  moment  .-* " 

Klara  had  tried  to  do  as  he  wished,  but  had  always 
said  immediately :  "  Oh,  it  hurts  me  so ! "  and  had 
clung  fast  to  hini ;  but  each  day  he  had  let  her  try  a 
little  longer. 

Such  a  beautiful  summer  had  not  been  seen  on  the 
Aim  for  many  years.  Every  day  the  beaming  sun 
shone  in  a  cloudless  sky  and  all  the  little  flowers  opened 
their  chalices  wide  and  gleamed  and  sent  their  fragrance 
up  to  it,  and  at  evening  it  threw  its  purple  and  rosy 
light  over  the  rocky  peaks  and  across  the  snow  fields 
and  then  disappeared  in  a  blazing  sea  of  gold. 

Heidi  told  her  friend  Klara  about  it  all  again  and 


312  HEIDI 

again,  for  it  could  only  be  seen  properly  up  in  the  pas- 
ture, and  she  was  especially  enthusiastic  about  the  place 
up  on  the  slope  where  there  were  great  quantities  of 
shining,  golden  wild  roses  and  so  many  bluebells  that 
one  would  think  the  grass  was  blue,  and  near  by  great 
bushes  full  of  little  brown  flowers  which  smell  so  lovely 
that  one  has  to  sit  down  on  the  ground  among  them 
and  never  wants  to  leave  them.  Sitting  under  the  fir 
trees,  Heidi  had  just  been  telling  again  about  the  flowers 
up  there  and  the  sunset  and  the  fiery  rocks,  and  then 
such  a  longing  seized  her  to  go  up  there  again  that 
she  suddenly  jumped  up  and  ran  to  her  grandfather, 
who  was  sitting  in  his  shop  carving. 

"  Oh,  grandfather,"  she  called  out  before  she  was 
at  all  near  him,  "  will  you  come  with  us  up  to  the  pas- 
ture to-morrow  "i     It  is  so  lovely  up  there  now  ! " 

"  I  will  agree  to  it,"  said  the  grandfather  in  assent  ; 
"  but  the  little  daughter  must  also  do  me  a  favor :  she 
must  try  again  hard  this  evening  to  stand." 

Heidi  came  back,  shouting  for  joy,  with  her  news  to 
Klara ;  and  Klara  promised  to  try  to  stand  on  her  feet 
as  many  times  as  the  grandfather  wished,  for  she  was 
immensely  delighted  to  take  this  journey  up  to  the 
beautiful  goat  pasture.  Heidi  was  so  full  of  joy  that 
she  called  out  to  Peter  as  soon  as  she  saw  him  coming 
down  that  evening :  — 

"  Peter !  Peter !  we  are  coming  up  with  you  to-mor- 
row, to  stay  all  day." 

In  reply  Peter  growled  like  an  angry  bear  and  struck 
out  furiously  at  the  innocent  Distelfinck,  trotting  along 


IVHAT  HAPPENED   ON   THE  MOUNTAIN  313 

beside  him.  But  the  alert  Distelfinck  had  noticed  the 
movement  at  the  right  time.  He  made  a  leap  high  over 
Schneehopli  and  the  blow  whizzed  in  the  air. 

Klara  and  Heidi  went  up  to  their  two  beautiful  beds 
with  great  expectations,  and  they  were  so  full  of  their 
plans  for  the  next  day  that  they  decided  to  stay  awake 
all  night  and  to  talk  about  them  until  they  could  get  up 
again.  But  scarcely  had  they  lain  down  on  their  soft 
pillows  when  their  talk  suddenly  ceased  and  Klara  saw 
before  her  in  a  dream  a  great  big  field,  which  looked 
as  blue  as  the  sky,  it  was  so  thickly  studded  with  bright 
bluebells ;  and  Heidi  heard  the  robber-bird  up  in  the 
air  screaming  down  :  "  Come !  come !  come !  '* 


CHAPTER   VIII 

SOMETHING   UNEXPECTED   HAPPENS 

Very  early  the  next  morning  the  uncle  came  out  of 
the  hut  and  looked  around  to  see  what  the  day  was 
going  to  be. 

On  the  lofty  mountain  peaks  lay  a  reddish-golden 
light  ;  a  cool  breeze  was  beginning  to  rock  the  branches 
of  the  fir  trees  to  and  fro ;  the  sun  was  coming  up. 

For  a  while  the  old  man  stood  earnestly  watching 
how,  after  the  high  mountain  tops,  the  green  hills  began 
to  shine  golden,  and  then  the  dark  shadows  gently 
faded  away  from  the  valley  and  a  rosy  light  flowed  in, 
and  both  heights  and  depths  gleamed  in  the  morning 
gold.     The  sun  was  up. 

Then  the  uncle  brought  the  wheel  chair  out  of  the 
shop,  placed  it  ready  for  the  journey  in  front  of  the  hut, 
and  afterwards  went  in  to  tell  the  children  how  beauti- 
ful the  morning  had  dawned,  and  to  bring  them  out. 

Just  then  Peter  came  climbing  up  the  mountain. 
His  goats  did  not  come  so  trustfully  as  usual  by  his 
side,  and  close  in  front  of  him  and  behind,  up  the  moun- 
tain, they  sprang  timidly  around  here  and  there,  for 
Peter  kept  striking  about  him  without  any  occasion,  like 
a  madman  ;  apd  wherever  he  hit  he  hurt.  Peter  had 
reached    the   highest    point   of   anger  and    bitterness. 

314 


SOMETHING   UNEXPECTED  HAPPENS  315 

For  weeks  he  had  not  had  Heidi  to  himself,  as  usual. 
When  he  came  up  in  the  morning,  the  strange  child  had 
always  been  brought  out  in  her  chair,  and  Heidi  was 
occupied  with  her.  When  he  came  down  at  evening, 
the  wheel  chair  with  its  occupant  was  still  standing 
under  the  fir  trees,  and  Heidi  was  busy  doing  some- 
thing for  her.  She  had  not  been  up  to  the  pasture  all 
summer  long,  and  now  to-day  she  was  coming,  but  with 
the  chair  and  the  stranger  in  it,  and  would  devote  her- 
self to  her  the  whole  time.  Peter  saw  how  it  would  be, 
and  it  had  brought  his  secret  anger  to  a  climax.  He 
noticed  the  chair  standing  there  so  proudly  on  its 
wheels,  and  looked  at  it  as  if  it  were  an  enemy  which 
had  done  him  all  sorts  of  harm,  and  to-day  was  going 
to  do  still  more. 

Peter  looked  around  him ;  everything  was  still,  not 
a  person  was  to  be  seen.  Then,  as  if  he  were  crazy,  he 
rushed  at  the  chair,  seized  it  and  pushed  it  with  such 
force,  in  his  anger,  toward  the  slope  of  the  mountain 
that  it  actually  started  away  and  in  a  moment  had  dis- 
appeared. 

Then  Peter  rushed  up  the  Aim  as  if  he  had  wings, 
and  did  not  once  stop  until  he  had  reached  a  great 
blackberry  bush,  behind  which  he  could  hide,  for  he 
was  not  anxious  to  have  the  uncle  catch  sight  of  him. 
But  he  wanted  to  see  what  became  of  the  chair,  and 
the  bush  was  favorably  situated  on  a  projection  of  the 
mountain.  Partly  concealed,  Peter  could  look  down 
the  Alni,  and  if  the  uncle  appeared  he  could  quickly 
hide  himself.     This  he  did,  and  what  a  sight  met  his 


316  HEIDI 

eyes  !  His  enemy  had  already  gone  rushing  far  below, 
driven  on  faster  and  faster ;  then  it  turned  over  again 
and  again ;  then  it  bounded  up  in  the  air  and  fell  down 
on  the  ground  again,  and  went  rolling  over  and  over  to 
its  destruction. 

Pieces  were  flying  away  from  it  in  every  direction  — 
feet,  cushions,  back,  all  thrown  high  in  the  air.  Peter 
took  such  furious  delight  in  the  sight  that  he  jumped 
high  with  both  feet  together;  he  laughed  aloud,  he 
stamped  with  joy,  he  leaped  around  in  circles,  he  kept 
coming  back  to  the  same  spot  and  looking  down  the 
mountain.  He  burst  out  into  fresh  laughter  and  danced 
anew  for  joy.  He  was  completely  beside  himself  with 
delight  at  the  ruin  of  his  enemy,  for  he  saw  good  things 
in  prospect  for  him.  Now  the  strange  child  would 
have  to  go  away,  for  she  had  no  means  of  moving  about. 
Heidi  would  be  alone  again  and  come  up  to  the  pasture 
with  him,  and  in  the  morning  and  at  evening  she  would 
be  there  when  he  came,  and  everything  would  be  as  it 
was  before.  But  Peter  did  not  considerwhat  it  meant 
when  one  has  begun  to  do  a  wicked  deed,  or  what  the 
consequences  may  be. 

Heidi  came  jumping  out  of  the  hut  and  ran  to  the 
shop.  Her  grandfather  followed  her  with  Klara  in  his 
arms.  The  shop  door  stood  wide  open;  both  boards 
had  been  taken  away,  so  that  it  was  as  light  as  day 
in  the  farthest  corner.  Heidi  looked  all  about,  ran 
around  the  corner,  and  came  back  again  with  the  great- 
est amazement  in  her  face.  Just  then  her  grandfather 
came  along. 


SOMETHING   UNEXPECTED  HAPPENS  317 

"  What  is  it  ?  Have  you  rolled  the  chair  away, 
Heidi  ?  "  he  asked. 

"I  have  looked  for  it  everywhere,  grandfather,  and 
you  said  it  was  standing  by  the  shop  door,"  said  the 
child,  still  looking  in  every  direction. 

Meanwhile  the  wind  had  grown  stronger ;  it  rattled 
around  the  shop  door  and  suddenly  threw  it  with  a 
crash  back  against  the  wall. 

"  Grandfather,  the  wind  has  done  it ! "  exclaimed 
Heidi ;  and  her  eyes  flashed  at  the  suggestion.  "  Oh, 
if  it  has  blown  the  chair  down  to  Dorfli,  it  will  be  too 
late  before  we  can  get  it  back,  and  we  can't  go  at  all." 

"  If  it  has  rolled  down  there,  it  will  never  come  back, 
for  it  is  in  a  hundred  pieces,"  said  her  grandfather, 
stepping  around  the  corner  and  looking  down  the 
mountain.  "  It  is  singular  how  it  happened,"  he  added 
as  he  looked  back  at  the  distance,  for  the  chair  had  to 
go  around  the  corner  of  the  hut  first. 

"  Oh,  what  a  shame !  we  can't  go  now,  and  perhaps 
never,"  bewailed  Klara;  "now  I  shall  really  have  to 
go  home,  for  I  haVen't  any  chair.  Oh,  what  a  shame ! 
What  a  shame !  " 

But  Heidi  looked  quite  trustfully  up  at  her  grand- 
father and  said :  — 

"  Surely,  grandfather,  you  can  find  a  way,  so  that  it 
won't  be  as  Klara  thinks,  and  that  she  won't  have  to 
go  home  right  off .? " 

"We  will  go  up  to  the  pasture  this  time  as  we 
intended;  then  we  will  see  what  will  happen  next," 
said  the  grandfather. 


318  HEIDI 

The  children  shouted  for  joy. 

He  went  back  into  the  hut,  brought  out  a  good  num- 
ber of  wraps,  laid  them  in  the  sunniest  place  near  the 
hut,  and  set  Klara  down  on  them.  Then  he  brought 
the  children  their  morning  milk  and  led  Schwanli  and 
Barli  out  of  the  shed. 

"Why  is  he  so  long  coming  up  this  morning?"  said 
the  uncle  to  himself,  for  Peter's  whistle  had  not  yet 
sounded. 

The  grandfather  then  took  Klara  up  with  one  arm 
and  the  wraps  with  the  other. 

"There,  now,  forward  !  "  he  said,  starting  along  ;  "the 
goats  may  come  with  us." 

This  pleased  Heidi.  With  one  arm  around  Schwanli's 
neck  and  the  other  around  Barli's,  Heidi  followed  after 
her  grandfather ;  and  the  goats  were  so  delighted  to  go 
again  with  Heidi  that  out  of  pure  affection  they  almost 
squeezed  her  to  death  between  them. 

When  they  reached  the  pasture,  all  at  once  they  saw 
the  goats  standing  in  groups,  peacefully  grazing  here 
and  there  on  the  slopes,  and  Peter  lying  at  full  length 
in  the  midst  of  them. 

"Another  time  I  will  cure  you  of  passing  us  by, 
sleepy-head  ;  what  did  you  mean  .''  "  the  uncle  called  out 
to  him. 

Peter  jumped  up  at  the  sound  of  the  well-known 
voice. 

"  Nobody  was  up,"  he  replied. 

"  Did  you  see  anything  of  the  chair } "  asked  the 
uncle  again. 


SOMETHING    UNEXPECTED   HAPPENS  319 

"  Of  what  ?  "  said  Peter  crossly,  in  reply. 

The  uncle  said  nothing  more.  He  spread  the  shawls 
out  on  the  sunny  slope,  placed  Klara  on  them,  and 
asked  if  she  was  comfortable. 

"  As  comfortable  as  in  my  chair,"  she  said,  thanking 
him  ;  "  and  I  am  in  the  most  beautiful  place.  It  is  so 
beautiful  here,  Heidi,  so  beautiful ! "  she  exclaimed, 
looking  all  about  her. 

The  grandfather  started  to  go  back.  He  said  they 
ought  to  enjoy  themselves  together  now,  and  when  it 
was  time  Heidi  must  bring  out  the  dinner,  which  he 
had  left  packed  in  the  bag,  over  in  the  shade.  Then 
Peter  would  give  them  as  much  milk  as  they  wanted  to 
drink,  but  Heidi  must  take  good  care  that  it  came  from 
Schwanli,  Toward  evening  the  grandfather  would  re- 
turn ;  now  he  wanted  above  all  to  go  after  the  chair 
and  see  what  had  become  of  it. 

The  sky  was  deep  blue,  and  not  a  single  cloud  was 
to  be  seen  anywhere.  The  great  snow  field  beyond 
them  sparkled  like  thousands  and  thousands  of  gold 
and  silver  stars.  The  gray  rocky  peaks  stood  high  and 
steadfast  in  their  places,  as  they  had  done  for  ages, 
looking  down  solemnly  into  the  valley  below.  The 
great  bird  rocked  himself  up  in  the  blue,  and  the  moun- 
tain wind  passed  over  the  heights  and  blew  cool  around 
the  sunny  Aim.  The  children  were  indescribably  happy. 
Now  and  then  a  little  goat  would  come  and  lie  down 
by  them  for  a  while  ;  the  affectionate  Schneehopli 
came  most  frequently  and  laid  her  little  head  against 
Heidi,  and  would  not  have  gone  away  at  all  if  another 


320  HEIDI 

one  of  the  flock  had  not  driven  her  off.  Thus  Klara 
learned  to  know  the  goats  so  well  that  she  never  mis- 
took one  for  another,  for  each  had  a  quite  different 
face  and  peculiar  manner. 

They  now  felt  so  familiar  with  Klara  that  they  came 
quite  near  and  rubbed  their  heads  against  her  shoulder ; 
this  was  always  a  sign  of  friendship  and  affection. 

Several  hours  had  passed  in  this  way,  when  it  occurred 
to  Heidi  that  she  would  like  to  go  over  to  the  place 
where  there  were  so  many  flowers,  and  see  if  they 
were  all  open  and  as  beautiful  as  they  were  the  year 
before. 

When  her  grandfather  came  back  at  evening  they 
might  go  there  with  Klara,  but  perhaps  the  flowers 
would  already  have  their  eyes  closed  then.  Heidi's  long- 
ing kept  increasing  until  she  could  resist  it  no  longer. 
So  she  asked  a  little  timidly  :  — 

"  Would  you  be  angry,  Klara,  if  I  should  run  away 
very  fast  and  leave  you  alone }  I  should  so  much  like 
to  see  how  the  flowers  are ;  but  wait "  —  a  thought 
came  to  Heidi.  She  jumped  aside  and  pulled  up  some 
beautiful  bunches  of  green  plants  ;  Schneehopli  im- 
mediately came  running  toward  her,  and  she  took  her 
around  the  neck  and  led  her  to  Klara. 

"There,  you  must  not  be  left  alone,"  said  Heidi, 
pushing  Schneehopli  to  a  place  a  little  nearer  Klara. 
This  the  goat  understood  very  well  and  lay  down. 
Then  Heidi  threw  the  leaves  into  Klara's  lap,  and  she 
said,  much  delighted,  that  Heidi  must  go  now  and  take 
a  good  look  at  the  flowers  ;  she  was  perfectly  willing 


SOMETHING'  UNEXPECTED  HAPPENS  321 

to  Stay  alone  with  the  goat ;  it  was  something  she  had 
never  done  before. 

Heidi,  ran  away  and  Klara  began  to  hold  out  one  leaf 
after  another  for  Schneehopli ;  and  the  goat  was  so  tame 
that  she  nestled  up  to  her  new  friend  and  ate  the 
leaves  slowly  out  of  her  fingers.  One  could  easily  see 
how  contented  she  was,  that  she  dared  to  lie  so  quietly 
and  peacefully  in  this  place  of  refuge,  for  outside  with 
the  flock  she  always  had  to  endure  a  great  deal  of  per- 
secution from  the  big,  strong  goats.  How  delightful 
it  seemed  to  Klara  to  sit  in  this  way,  all  alone  on  a 
mountain,  with  only  a  little  trusting  goat  looking  up 
at  her  so  helplessly.  A  great  desire  arose  in  her  to 
"Become  her  own  master  and  be  able  to  help  some  one 
else  and  not  always  be  obliged  to  take  help  from  others. 
And  so  many  thoughts  which  she  had  never  had  before 
came  to  Klara,  and  a  strange  desire  to  live  on  in  the 
beautiful  sunshine  and  do  something  to  give  pleasure 
to  some  one  as  she  was  now  pleasing  Schneehopli. 
An  entirely  new  joy  came  into  her  heart,  and  it  seemed 
as  if  everything  she  knew  might  be  much  more  beauti- 
ful and  different  from  what  she  had  ever  seen  before ; 
and  she  felt  so  contented  and  happy  that  she  had  to 
throw  her  arms  around  the  goat's  neck  and  exclaim  : — 

*?  Oh,  Schneehopli,  how  beautiful  it  is  up  here ;  if  I 
only  could  stay  here  always  with  you !  " 
.  Meanwhile  Heidi  had  reached  the  place  where  the 
flowers  were.  She  screamed  with  delight.  The  whole 
slope  lay  covered  with  shining  gold.  They  were  the 
bright  rock  roses.     Thick,  deep  clusters  of  bluebells 


322  HEIDI 

nodded  above  them,  and  a  strong  spicy  odor  filled  the  air 
about  the  sunny  spot,  as  if  cups  of  the  most  precious 
balsam  were  poured  out  up  there.  All  the  fragrance, 
however,  came  from  the  little  brown  blossoms  which 
stretched  up  their  round  heads  modestly  here  and  there 
between  the  golden  flower-cups.  Heidi  stood  and 
looked  and  drew  in  long  breaths  of  the  sweet  air. 
Suddenly  she  turned  around  and  came  panting  with 
excitement  back  to  Klara. 

"  Oh,  you  really  must  come,"  she  called  out  before 
she  had  reached  her;  "they  are  so  beautiful,  and 
everything  is  so  beautiful,  and  perhaps  by  evening  it 
won't  be  so  any  longer.  Perhaps  I  can  carry  you ; 
don't  you  think  I  could } " 

Klara  looked  at  the  excited  Heidi  in  surprise;  she 
shook  her  head. 

"  No,  no  ;  what  are  you  thinking  about,  Heidi  r  you 
are  ever  so  much  smaller  than  I.  Oh,  if  I  only  could 
walk ! " 

Then  Heidi  looked  all  around  her  trying  to  think  of 
some  new  plan.  Up  where  he  had  been  lying  on  the 
ground  Peter  still  sat  staring  down  at  the  children. 
He  had  been  sitting  thus  for  hours,  always  gazing  down, 
as  if  he  could  not  realize  what  he  saw.  He  had 
destroyed  the  hated  chair  that  he  might  make  an  end 
.of  it  all,  and  so  that  the  stranger  might  not  be  able  to 
move ;  and  a  short  time  after  she  appeared  up  there  and 
was  sitting  before  him  on  the  ground  next  to  Heidi. 
It  could  not  be  possible,  and  yet  it  was  true,  and  when- 
ever he  chose  he  could  see  that  it  was  so. 


SOMETHING   UNEXPECTED  HAPPENS  iU 

Heidi  looked  up  at  him. 

"  Come  down  here,  Peter ! "  she  called  very  decid- 
edly. 

"  Shan't  come,"  he  called  back. 

"But  you  must!  Come,  I  can't  do  it  alone,  and 
you  must  help  me ;  come  quick ! "  urged  Heidi. 

"  Shan't  come,"  he  replied  again. 

Then  Heidi  ran  a  little  way  up  the  mountain  toward 
him.  ^ 

She  stood  there  with  flashing  eyes  and  called  out :  — 

"  Peter,  if  you  don't  come  here  at  once,  I  will  do 
something  to  you  that  you  won't  like  at  all ;  you  can 
believe  what  I  say !  "        . 

These  words  stabbed  Peter,  and  he  was  seized  with 
great  fear.  He  had  done  something  wicked  which  no 
one  must  know.  Until  now  it  had  delighted  him;  but 
Heidi  spoke  as  if  she  knew  all  about  it,  and  would  tell 
her  grandfather  everything  she  knew,  and  Peter  was 
more  afraid  of  him  than  any  one  else.  If  he  should 
hear  what  had  become  of  the  chair!  Peter's  distress 
choked  him  worse  and  worse.  He  rose  and  came 
toward  Heidi,  who  was  waiting  for  him. 

"  I  am  coming,  but  then  you  must  n't  do  it,"  he  said, 
so  subdued  with  fright  that  Heidi  was  quite  touched. 

"  No,  no,  I  will  not  do  it  now,"  she  said  assuringly ; 
"  only  come  with  me ;  there  is  nothing  to  be  afraid  of 
in  what  I  want  you  to  do.*' 

When  they  reached  Klara,  Heidi  began  to  give  orders. 
Peter  was  to  take  Klara  firmly  under  one  arm  and  Heidi 
take  her  under  the  other,  and  then  they  would  lift  her 


324  HEIDI 

up.  This  went  quite  well,  but  then  came  the  difficulty. 
Klara  could  not  stand;  how  could  they  hold  her  and 
get  her  along  ?  Heidi  was  too  small  to  support  her  with 
her  arm. 

"  You  must  put  your  arm  around  my  neck  now  very 
firmly  —  so.  And  you  must  take  Peter's  arm  and  lean 
on  it  hard ;  then  we  can  carry  you." 

But  Peter  had  never  given  any  one  his  arm  before. 
Klara  took  it  all  right,  but  he  held  it  stiffly  down  by 
his  side  like  a  long  stick. 

"That  is  not  the  way  to  do,  Peter,"  said  Heidi  very 
decidedly.  "You  must  make  a  ring  with  your  arm, 
and  then  Klara  must  put  hers  .through  it,  and  she  must 
lean  on  it  very  hard,  and  you  mustn't  let  go  at  any 
price ;  then  we  can  move  along." 

This  was  done,  but  they  did  not  make  much  progress. 
Klara  was  not  so  light,  and  the  others  were  too  unlike 
in  size ;  one  side  went  up  and  the  other  down,  making 
the  support  uncertain. 

Klara  tried  to  bear  weight  on  Her  feet  a  little,  but 
she  could  not  move  them  forward. 

"Just  stamp  right  down,"  suggested  Heidi,  "then  it 
will  hurt  you  less  afterwards." 

"  Do  you  think  so  .?  "  said  Klara  timidly. 

But  she  obeyed  and  ventured  to  take  one  firm  step 
on  the  ground  and  then  another ;  but  it  made  her  give 
a  little  scream.  Then  she  lifted  one  foot  again  and 
put  it  down  more  carefully. 

"  Oh,  that  did  n't  hurt  nearly  so  much,"  she  said,  full 
of  delight. 


SOMETHING   UNEXPECTED  HAPPENS 


325 


"  Do  it  once  more,"  urged  Heidi  eagerly. 

Klara  did  so,  and  then  again  and  again,  and  suddenly 
she  cried  out :  — 

"  I  can,  Heidi !  Oh,  I  can  !  See !  see !  I  can  take 
steps,  one  after  another." 

Then  Heidi  shouted  still  louder. 

"  Oh,  oh  !  Can  you  really  step  yourself  t  Can  you 
walk  no)y  ">.     Can   you  really  walk  yourself  .•'     Oh,  if 


only  grandfather  would  come !  Now  you  can  walk, 
now  you  can  walk !  "  she  exclaimed  again  and  again  in 
triumphant  delight. 

Klara  leaned  on  both  of  them,  but  with  each  step 
she  gained  a  little  more  confidence,  as  all  three  could 
see.     Heidi  was  quite  beside  herself  with  delight. 

"  Oh,  now,  we  can  come  up  to  the  pasture  together 


326  HEIDI 

every  day  and  go  wherever  we  please  on  the  mountain  ! " 
she  exclaimed  again  ;  "  and  you  can  go  about  as  I  do  all 
the  rest  of  your  life,  and  never  be  pushed  in  a  chair,  and 
be  well.     Oh,  this  is  the  greatest  joy  we  could  have ! " 

Klara  agreed  with  all  her  heart.  Surely  she  could 
have  no  greater  fortune  in  the  world  than  to  be  well 
and  be  able  to  go  about  like  other  people,  and  not  be 
miserably  condemned  to  sit  all  day  long  in  an  invalid 
chair. 

It  was  not  far  to  the  slope  where  the  flowers  grew. 
They  could  already  see  the  gleam  of  the  golden  roses 
in  the  sun.  Then  they  came  to  the  clusters  of  blue- 
bells where  the  sunny  ground  showed  through  so  invit- 
ingly. 

"  Can't  we  sit  down  here  "i  "  asked  Klara. 

It  was  just  what  Heidi  wished  to  do,  and  the  children 
sat  down  in  the  midst  of  the  flowers,  Klara  for  the  first 
time  on  the  dry  mountain  ground ;  this  pleased  her  more 
than  she  could  tell.  All  around  them  the  nodding 
bluebells,  the  shining  golden  roses,  the  red  centauries, 
and  everywhere  the  sweet  fragrance  of  the  brown  blos- 
soms and  the  spicy  wild  plum.  Everything  was  so 
lovely  —  so  lovely  ! 

Heidi,  too,  as  she  sat  next  her,  thought  it  had  never 
been  so  beautiful  up  there  before,  and  she  did  not  know 
why  she  felt  such  joy  in  her  heart,  so  that  she  had  to 
keep  shouting  aloud.  But  suddenly  it  occurred  to  her 
that  Klara  had  been  made  well ;  this  was  a  far  greater 
joy  than  all  the  beauty  around  them.  Klara  was  per- 
fectly silent ;  she  was  so  delighted  and  fascinated  with 


SOMETHING   UNEXPECTED  HAPPENS  327 

everything  she  saw,  and  with  the  prospect  the  experi- 
ence she  had  just  had  presented  to  her.  There  was 
hardly  any  room  in  her  heart  for  the  great  fortune; 
and  the  sunshine  and  fragrance  of  the  flowers,  besides, 
overpowered  her  with  a  feeling  of  joy  which  made  her 
quite  speechless. 

Peter  lay  silent  also  and  motionless  in  the  midst  of 
this  field  of  flowers,  for  he  was  almost  asleep.  The 
wind  blew  down  softly  and  caressingly  behind  the  pro- 
tecting rocks  and  whispered  up  in  the  bushes.  Now 
and  then  Heidi  had  to  get  up  and  run  about,  for  there 
was  always  some  place  still  more  beautiful,  where  the 
flowers  were  thicker,  the  fragrance  stronger,  because 
the  wind  blew  it  here  and  there ;  she  had  to  sit  down 
everywhere. 

Thus  the  hours  fled  away. 

The  sun  was  long  past  midday  when  a  troop  of  goats 
came  walking  quite  gravely  up  to  the  flower  field.  It 
was  not  their  pasturage ;  they  had  never  been  brought 
there  before ;  they  did  not  like  to  graze  among  the 
flowers.  They  looked  like  an  embassy  with  Distelfinck 
ahead.  The  goats  had  evidently  come  to  look  for  their 
companions  who  had  left  them  so  long  in  the  lurch  and 
stayed  away  beyond  all  rules,  for  the  goats  knew  the 
time  well.  When  Distelfinck  spied  the  three  missing 
ones  in  the  flower  field  he  began  to  bleat  loudly, 
and  immediately  all  the  others  joined  in  a  chorus  and 
came  along  making  a  great  noise.  Then  Peter  woke 
up.  But  he  had  to  rub  his  eyes  hard,  for  he  had  been 
dreaming  that  the  wheel  chair  was  standing  again,  all 


328  HEIDI 

upholstered  in  red  and  unharmed,  in  front  of  the  hut, 
and  now  that  he  was  awake  he  still  saw  the  gold  nails 
in  the  upholstery  shine  in  the  sun ;  but  quickly  he  dis- 
covered that  they  were  only  the  yellow,  glistening 
flowers  on  the  ground.  Then  Peter's  distress,  which 
had  entirely  disappeared  at  sight  of  the  uninjured  chair, 
came  back  to  him.  Although  Heidi  had  promised  not 
to  do  anything,  yet  Peter  grew  very  much  afraid  that 
what  he  had  done  might  be  found  out.  He  was  very 
meek  and  willing  to  be  the  guide  and  do  everything 
exactly  as  Heidi  wished. 

When  they  had  all  three  come  back  to  the  pasture, 
Heidi  quickly  brought  out  her  well-filled  dinner  bag 
and  set  about  keeping  her  promise,  for  her  threat  had 
reference  to  the  contents  of  the  bag.  She  had  espe- 
cially noticed  in  the  morning  what  good  things  her 
grandfather  put  in,  and  had  been  pleased  to  think  that 
a  good  part  of  it  would  fall  to  Peter's  share.  But  when 
Peter  was  so  disagreeable,  she  wanted  to  make  him 
understand  that  he  would  not  have  what  otherwise  had 
been  intended  for  him.  Heidi  took  piece  after  piece 
out  of  the  bag  and  made  three  little  heaps  of  them, 
which  were  so  high  that  she  said  to  herself  with  satis- 
faction :  "  Then  he  will  have  all  that  we  leave." 

Then  she  gave  a  little  pile  to  each  one  and  sat  down 
beside  Klara  with  her  own,  and  the  children  thoroughly 
enjoyed  their  dinner  after  their  great  exertion. 

It  happened  just  as  Heidi  expected  ;  when  they  both 
were  satisfied,  there  was  still  so  much  left  that  they 
gave  Peter  another  pile  as  large  as  the  first.     He  ate 


SOMETHING   UNEXPECTED  HAPPENS  329 

it  all  silently  without  stopping,  even  to  the  crumbs, 
but  he  accomplished  his  work  without  the  usual  sat- 
isfaction. Something  lay  in  Peter's  stomach  which 
gnawed  and  choked  him  and  squeezed  him  at  every 
mouthful. 

The  children  had  returned  so  late  to  their  dinner 
that  immediately  after  the  grandfather  was  seen  coming 
up  the  Aim  to  get  them.  Heidi  rushed  to  meet  him  ; 
she  had  to  tell  him  first  of  all  what  had  happened. 
She  was  so  excited  over  her  good  news  that  she  could 
hardly  find  words  to  tell  her  grandfather;  but  he 
understood  at  once  what  the  child  meant,  and  his  face 
lighted  up  with  joy.  He  hastened  his  steps,  and  when 
he  reached  Klara,  said,  smiling  gladly  :  — 

"  So  you  ventured  and  you  have  really  succeeded !  " 

Then  he  lifted  Klara  from  the  ground,  put  his  left 
arm  around  her,  and  held  out  his  right  as  a  strong  sup- 
port for  her  hand,  and  Klara  walked,  in  this  way,  even 
more  surely  and  less  timidly  than  before. 

Heidi  shouted  and  danced  around,  and  her  grand- 
father looked  as  if  some  great  good  fortune  had  come 
to  him.  But  he  suddenly  took  Klara  in  his  arms  and 
said :  — 

"  We  will  not  overdo  it ;  it  is  time  now  to  go  home." 
And  he  started  on  the  way  at  once,  for  he  knew  that 
Klara  had  made  enough  exertion  for  that  day  and  that 
she  needed  rest. 

When  Peter  with  his  goats  came  down  late  that 
evening  to  Dorfli,  a  crowd  of  people  were  standing 
together,  pushing  each  other  this  way  and  that  to  get 


330  HEIDI 

a  better  view  of  what  lay  in  their  midst,  Peter  had  to 
see  too;  he  pushed  and  squeezed  right  and  left  and 
made  his  way  through. 

Then  he  saw  what  it  was. 

On  the  grass  lay  the  middle  part  of  the  wheel  chair 
with  a  portion  of  the  back  still  hanging  to  it.  The  red 
upholstery  and  the  bright  nails  still  showed  how  splen- 
did it  had  looked  when  it  was  perfect. 

"  I  was  here  when  it  came  down,"  said  the  baker, 
who  was  standing  next  to  Peter  ;  "  it  was  worth  at  least 
five  hundred  francs.  I  '11  wager  that  with  any  one. 
But  it 's  a  wonder  to  me  how  it  happened." 

"The  wind  must  have  brought  it  down;  the  uncle 
said  so  himself,"  remarked  Barbel,  who  could  not  ad- 
mire the  handsome  red  material  enough. 

"  It  is  a  good  thing  that  it  was  n't  any  one  else  who 
did  it,"  said  the  baker  again  ;  "he  would  be  in  a  fine 
fix.  If  the  gentleman  in  Frankfurt  hears  of  it,  he  will 
try  to  find  out  how  it  happened.  As  for  me,  I  am  glad 
that  I  have  n't  been  upon  the  Aim  for  two  years ;  sus- 
picion may  fall  on  any  one  who  was  seen  up  there  at 
that  time." 

A  good  many  other  opinions  were  expressed,  but 
Peter  had  heard  enough.  He  crept  quite  meekly  and 
softly  out  of  the  crowd  and  ran  with  all  his  might  up 
the  mountain,  as  if  some  one  were  after  him  to  catch 
him.  The  baker's  words  had  given  him  a  terrible 
scare.  He  felt  sure  that  at  any  moment  an  officer  from 
Frankfurt  might  come  to  look  into  the  matter,  and 
then  he  might  find  out  that  he  had  done  it,  and  he 


SOMETHING  UNEXPECTED  HAPPENS  331 

would  seize  him  and  take  him  to  the  house  of  correc- 
tion in  Frankfurt.  Peter  saw  this  before  him  and  his 
hair  stood  on  end  from  fear. 

He  came  home  very  much  distressed.  He  would 
make  no  reply  to  any  remark  and  would  not  eat  his 
potatoes  ;  he  crept  hurriedly  into  bed  and  groaned. 

"  Peterli  has  been  eating  sorrel  again  ;  he  has  some 
in  his  stomach,  and  that  makes  him  groan  so,"  said  his 
mother,  Brigitte. 

"  You  must  give  him  a  little  more  bread  to  take  with 
him  ;  give  him  a  piece  of  mine  to-morrow,"  said  the 
grandmother  compassionately. 


When  the  children  that  night  looked  up  from  their 
beds  at  the  starlight,  Heidi  said  :  — 

"  Have  n't  you  been  thinking  all  day  long  to-day  how 
good  it  is  that  the  dear  Lord  does  n't  give  us  what  we 
pray  so  terribly  hard  for,  when  He  knows  of  something 
much  better .? " 

"  Why  do  you"  say  that  now,  Heidi  ?  "  asked  Klara. 

"  Don't  you  know,  because  I  prayed  so  hard  in 
Frankfurt  that  I  might  go  home  right  away,  and 
because  I  could  n't  go,  I  thought  the  dear  Lord  had 
not  heard  me.  But,  do  you  know,  if  I  had  gone  right 
away,  you  would  never  have  come  up  on  the  mountain, 
and  you  would  n't  have  got  well." 

Klara  became  quite  thoughtful. 

"  But,  Heidi,"  she  began  again,  "  then  we  ought  not 
to  pray  for  anything,  because  the  dear  Lord  certainly 


332  HEIDI 

has  always  something  better  in  mind  than  we  know 
and  ask  him  for." 

"  Oh,  Klara,  do  you  really  think  so  ?  "  Heidi  hastened 
to  say.  "  We  ought  to  pray  to  the  dear  Lord  every  day, 
and  about  every  single  thing ;  for  then  He  will  know 
that  we  do  not  forget  that  we  receive  everything  from 
Him.  And  if  we  forget  the  dear  Lord,  He  will  forget 
us  too;  your  grandmamma  told  me  that.  But,  you 
know,  if  we  do  not  receive  what  we  would  like,  we 
must  not  think  the  dear  Lord  has  not  listened,  and 
stop  praying,  but  we  must  pray  like  this  :  *  Now  I  know, 
dear  Lord,  that  you  have  something  better  in  store, 
and  I  will  be  glad  that  you  will  be  so  good  to  me.' " 

"How  did  you  find  out  all  this,  Heidi.?"  asked 
Klara. 

"Your  grandmamma  explained  it  to  me  first,  and 
then  it  happened  exactly  so,  and  then  I  knew  it.  But 
I  think,  Klara,"  Heidi  continued,  sitting  up,  "  that  to- 
night we  ought  really  to  thank  the  dear  Lord  heartily, 
because  He  has  sent  us  the  great  good  fortune  that  you 
are  able  to  walk  now." 

"  Yes,  indeed,  Heidi ;  you  are  right,  and  I  am  glad 
that  you  reminded  me.  I  was  so  delighted  I  almost 
forgot  it." 

Then  the  children  prayed,  and  each  thanked  the  dear 
Lord  in  her  own  way  for  sending  such  a  wonderful 
blessing  to  Klara,  who  had  been  ill  so  long. 

The  next  morning  the  grandfather  thought  they 
could  write  the  grandmamma  that  if  she  would  come 
up  on  the  Aim  there  would  be  something  new  for  her 


SOMETHING   UNEXPECTED  HAPPENS  333 

to  see.  But  the  children  had  another  plan.  They 
wanted  to  give  the  grandmamma  a  great  surprise. 
First,  Klara  was  to  learn  to  walk  better,  so  that  she 
could  go  a  little  way  with  only  Heidi's  support;  but 
the  grandmamma  must  not  have  the  least  supicion  of 
it.  The  grandfather  must  decide  how  long  it  would 
take,  and  as  he  thought  that  it  would  not  take  more 
than  a  week,  in  the  next  letter  they  would  give  her  an 
urgent  invitation  to  come  up  on  the  mountain  at  the 
end  of  that  time ;  but  not  a  word  must  be  said  to  her 
about  anything  new. 

The  days  which  followed  were  by  far  the  most  beau- 
tiful which  Klara  had  passed  on  the  Aim.  Every 
morning  she  awoke  with  these  delightful  words  in 
her  mind:  — 

"  I  am  well !  I  am  well !  I  do  not  need  to  sit  in  a 
wheel  chair  any  longer ;  I  can  go  about  by  myself  like 
other  people ! " 

Then  followed  the  walking ;  and  every  day  she  went 
more  easily  and  better,  and  was  able  to  take  longer  walks. 
The  exercise  caused  such  an  appetite  that  the  grand- 
father made  her  thick  slices  of  bread  and  butter  larger 
and  was  well  pleased  to  see  them  disappear.  He  always 
brought  with  them  a  large  pot  of  foaming  milk  and 
filled  bowl  after  bowl  with  it.  The  end  of  the  week 
came  and  with  it  the  day  that  was  to  bring  the 
grandmamma ! 


CHAPTER    IX 

PARTING   TO    MEET  AGAIN 

A  DAY  before  her  arrival  the  grandmamma  had 
written  a  letter  and  sent  it  up  to  the  Aim,  that  they 
might  know  there  exactly  when  she  was  coming.  Peter 
brought  this  letter  with  him  early  the  next  day,  as  he 
was  going  up  to  the  pasture.  The  grandfather  had 
already  come  out  of  the  hut  with  the  children,  and 
Schwanli  and  Barli  were  both  standing  outside,  gayly 
shaking  their  heads  in  the  cool  morning  air,  while  the 
children  stroked  them  and  wished  them  a  pleasant 
journey  up  the  mountain.  The  uncle  stood  by  and 
looked  first  at  the  children's  fresh  faces,  and  then  at 
his  clean,  sleek  goats.  Both  must  have  pleased  him, 
for  he  smiled  with  satisfaction. 

Then  Peter  came  along.  When  he  saw  the  group 
he  approached  slowly,  handed  the  letter  to  the  uncle, 
and  as  soon  as  he  had  taken  it  from  him  he  ran  tim- 
idly back  as  if  something  had  frightened  him ;  then  he 
looked  quickly  behind  him,  exactly  as  if  something  else 
was  going  to  frighten  him  ;  then  he  gave  a  leap  and 
ran  up  the  mountain. 

"Grandfather,"  said  Heidi,  who  had  been  watching 
Peter  in  surprise,  "why  does  Peter  act  like  the  big 
Tiirk  when  he  feels  the  rod  behind  him;  he  ducks  his 

334 


PARTING   TO  MEET  AGAIN  335 

head  and  shakes  himself  all  over  and  makes  sudden 
leaps  in  the  air." 

**  Perhaps  Peter  feels  that  there  is  a  rod  behind  him 
too,  and  knows  he  deserves  it,"  answered  her  grand- 
father. 

It  was  only  the  first  slope  that  Peter  ran  up  without 
stopping ;  as  soon  as  he  could  no  longer  be  seen  from 
below,  it  was  different.  Then  he  stood  still  and  turned 
his  head  timidly  in  every  direction  ;  suddenly  he  leaped 
into  the  air  and  looked  behind  him,  as  frightened  as  if 
some  one  had  just  seized  him  by  the  nape  of  the  neck. 
From  behind  every  bush  and  out  of  every  thicket  Peter 
thought  he  saw  a  policeman  from  Frankfurt  rushing 
out  at  him.  The  longer  this  anxious  expectation  lasted, 
the  more  terrible  it  became  to  Peter,  so  that  now  he 
had  not  a  moment's  peace. 

Heidi  had  the  hut  to  put  in  order,  for  the  grand- 
mamma must  find  everything  tidy  when  she  came. 

Klara  always  found  this  busy  cleaning  in  every  cor- 
ner of  the  hut  so  interesting  that  she  was  very  glad  to 
watch  Heidi  at  work. 

So  the  early  morning  hours  passed  before  the  chil- 
dren were  aware  of  it,  and  the  grandmamma  might  be 
expected  to  arrive  at  any  moment. 

Then  the  children  came  out  again,  all  ready  to  wel- 
come her,  and  sat  down  together  on  the  bench  in  front 
of  the  hut,  full  of  expectation. 

The  grandfather  also  joined  them  ;  he  had  taken  a 
walk  and  had  brought  home  a  great  bunch  of  deep-blue 
gentians,  which  looked  so  lovely  in  the  bright  morning 


336  HEIDI 

sun  that  the  children  shouted  for  joy  when  they  saw 
them.  The  grandfather  took  them  into  the  hut.  Every 
little  while  Heidi  jumped  up  from  the  bench  to  look 
and  see  whether  she  could  catch  sight  of  the  grand- 
mamma's party. 

At  last  Heidi  saw  exactly  what  she  had  been  expect- 
ing coming  up  from  below.  First  came  the  guide, 
then  the  white  horse  with  the  grandmamma  on  it,  and 
last  the  porter  with  the  deep  basket  on  his  back,  for 
the  grandmamma  would  never  think  of  coming  up  on 
the  mountain  without  plenty  of  wraps. 

Nearer  and  nearer  they  came.  Then  the  top  was 
reached  ;  the  grandmamma  looked  down  at  the  children 
from  her  horse. 

"  What  is  that  ?  What  do  I  see,  Klarchen }  You 
are  not  sitting  in  your  chair !  How  is  that  possible  }  " 
she  exclaimed  in  alarm  and  dismounted  hastily.  But 
before  she  had  reached  the  children  she  clapped  her 
hands  and  exclaimed  in  the  greatest  excitement  :  — 

"  Klarchen,  is  it  you  or  is  it  not  ?  You  really  have 
red  cheeks,  as  round  as  an  apple !  Child !  I  don't 
know  you  any  longer  !  " 

Then  the  grandmamma  was  going  to  rush  at  Klara ; 
but  Heidi  had  slipped  unnoticed  from  the  bench,  and 
Klara  quickly  leaned  on  her  shoulders,  and  the  children 
started  away  quite  calmly  to  take  a  little  walk.  The 
grandmamma  suddenly  stood  still,  first  from  fear,  for 
her  only  thought  was  that  Heidi  was  trying  to  do 
something  rash. 

But  what  did  she  see  before  her  ! 


PARTING    TO  MEET  AGAIN  337 

Klarawas  walking  upright  and  safely  beside  Heidi  ; 
then  they  came  back  again,  both  with  beaming  faces, 
both  with  rosy  cheeks. 

Then  the  grandmamma  rushed  toward  them.  Laugh- 
ing and  crying,  she  embraced  Klara,  then  Heidi  and  then 
Klara  again.     In  her  delight  she  could  find  no  words. 

Suddenly  she  caught  sight  of  the  uncle,  who  was 
standing  by  the  bench  and  smiling  with  satisfaction  as 
he  watched  the  three.  Then  she  seized  Klara's  arm 
and  with  continual  exclamations  of  delight  that  it  was 
really  true  that  she  could  walk  around  with  the  child, 
went  to  the  bench.  Here  she  let  Klara  go  and  grasped 
both  of  the  old  man's  hands. 

"  My  dear  uncle  !  My  dear  uncle  !  What  have  we 
to  thank  you  for !  It  is  your  work !  It  is  your  care 
and  nursing  "  — 

"  And  our  Lord's  sunshine  and  mountain  air,"  inter- 
rupted the  uncle,  smiling. 

"  Yes,  and  Schwanli's  lovely,  good  milk,  too,"  added 
Klara.  "  Grandmamma,  you  ought  to  know  how  I  can 
drink  the  goat's  milk,  and  how  good  it  is ! " 

"  I  can  see  that  by  your  cheeks,  Klarchen,"  said  her 
grandmamma,  laughing.  "No,  no  one  would  ever 
know  you ;  you  have  grown  round  and  broad,  as  I 
never  dreamed  you  could  be,  and  you  are  tall,  Klarchen ! 
Is  it  really  true.^  I  cannot  look  at  you  enough!  I 
must  send  a  telegram  at  once  to  my  son  in  Paris;  he 
must  come  immediately.  I  will  not  tell  him  why ;  it 
will  be  the  greatest  joy  of  his  life.  My  dear  uncle,  how 
can  it  be  done  ?   Have  you  sent  the  men  away  already? " 


338  HEIDI 

"They  have  gone,"  he  replied;  "but  if  the  grand- 
mamma is  in  haste,  we  can  send  down  the  goatherd, 
who  has  time." 

The  grandmamma  insisted  upon  sending  a  despatch 
at  once  to  her  son,  for  this  good  fortune  must  not  be 
kept  from  him  a  single  day. 

■  So  the  uncle  went  a  little  way  aside  and  gave  such  a 
penetrating  whistle  through  his  fingers  that  it  whistled 
back  from  the  rocks  above,  it  had  wakened  the  echo  so 
far  away.  It  was  not  long  before  Peter  came  running 
down,  for  he  knew  the  whistle  well.  Peter  was  white 
as  chalk,  for  he  thought  the  Aim-Uncle  was  calling  him 
to  judgment.  A  paper  which  the  grandmamma  had 
written  meanwhile  was  then  given  to  him,  and  the 
uncle  explained  that  he  was  to  carry  it  immediately 
down  into  Dorfli  and  to  give  it  to  the  postmaster ;  the 
uncle  would  pay  for  it  later  himself,  for  Peter  could  not 
be  intrusted  with  so  many  things  at  once. 

He  went  along  with  the  paper  in  his  hand,  much 
relieved  for  this  time,  as  the  uncle  had  hot  whistled  to 
call  him  to  account,  and  no  policeman  had  come. 

At  last  they  were  able  to  sit  down  quietly  together 
around  the  table  in  front  of  the  hut,  and  then  the 
grandmamma  had  to  be  told  how  it  had  all  happened 
from  the  beginning ;  how  at  first  the  grandfather  had 
tried  to  have  Klara  stand  and  then  take  steps,  then 
how  they  had  taken  the  journey  up  to  the  pasture  and 
the  wind  had  rolled  away  the  chair ;  how  Klara's 
eagerness  to  see  the  flowers  had  brought  about  her  first 
walk,  and  so  one  thing  grew  out  of  another.     But  it 


PARTING   TO  MEET  AGAIN  339 

was  a  long  time  before  the  children  finished  their  story, 
for  every  little  while  the  grandmamma  had  to  break 
forth  in  amazement  and  in  praise  and  thankfulness,  and 
exclaimed  again  and  again  :  — 

"  Is  it  really  possible  ?  Is  it  then  really  no  dream  ? 
Are  we  all  awake  and  sitting  here  in  front  of  the  Aim 
hut,  and  is  the  little  girl  before  me,  with  the  round, 
fresh  face,  my  old,  pale,  weak  Klarchen  ? " 

Klara  and  Heidi  were  in  a  constant  state  of  delight 
because  their  beautifully  planned  surprise  had  suc- 
ceeded so  well  with  the  grandmamma. 

Meanwhile  Herr  Sesemann  had  finished  his  business 
in  Paris  and  had  also  been  preparing  a  surprise.  With- 
out writing  a  word  to  his  mother,  he  took  the  train  one 
sunny  summer  morning  and  went  directly  through  to 
Basle,  leaving  there  early  the  following  day,  for  he  was 
seized  with  a  great  longing  to  see  his  little  daughter 
again,  having  been  separated  from  her  the  whole  sum- 
mer long.  He  reached  Ragatz  a  few  hours  after  his 
mother  had  left  there. 

He  found  that  she  had  that  very  day  started  to  go 
up  the  mountain.  So  he  immediately  took  a  carriage 
and  drove  to  Mayenfeld.  When  he  learned  there  that 
he  could  drive  on  to  Dorfli  he  did  so,  for  he  thought  it 
would  be  far  enough  to  have  to  walk  up  the  mountain. 

Herr  Sesemann  was  not  mistaken  ;  the  uninterrupted 
climbing  up  the  mountain  was  very  tiresome  and  hard 
for  him.  No  hut  appeared  in  sight,  and  he  knew  that 
he  ought  to  come  to  goatherd  Peter's  dwelling  halfway 
up,  for  he  had  often  heard  about  this  journey. 


340  HEIDI 

There  were  footpaths  leading  in  all  directions.  Herr 
Sesemann  was  not  sure  that  he  was  on  the  right 
path  or  whether  the  hut  might  not  perhaps  lie  on  the 
other  side  of  the  mountain.  He  looked  around  him, 
to  see  if  he  could  discover  any  human  being  whom  he 
could  ask  about  the  way.  But  it  was  silent  all  around ; 
far  and  wide  there  was  nothing  to  be  seen,  nothing  to 
be  heard.  Only  the  mountain  wind  blew  now  and  then 
through  the  air,  and  the  little  flies  buzzed  in  the  sun- 
shine, and  a  merry  bird  piped  here  and  there  on  a 
lonely  larch  tree.  Herr  Sesemann  stood  still  for  a 
while  and  let  the  mountain  breeze  cool  his  heated 
brow. 

Just  then  some  one  came  running  down  from  above ; 
it  was  Peter  with  the  despatch  in  his  hand.  He  was 
running  straight  ahead,  down  the  steep  places,  paying 
no  attention  to  the  footpath  where  Herr  Sesemann 
stood.  As  soon  as  the  boy  came  near  enough,  Herr 
Sesemann  beckoned  for  him  to  come  to  him.  Peter 
came  trembling  and  frightened,  sideways,  not  straight 
forward,  and  as  if  he  could  only  advance  properly  with 
one  foot  and  had  to  drag  the  other  after  him. 

"  Here,  youngster,  brace  up !  "  said  Herr  Sesemann 
encouragingly. 

"  Now  tell  me  if  this  path  will  bring  me  up  to  the 
hut,  where  the  old  man  lives  with  the  child  Heidi, 
where  the  people  from  Frankfurt  are." 

A  dull  sound  of  the  greatest  terror  was  the  answer, 
and  Peter  darted  away  with  such  bounds  that  he  rushed 
heels  over  head   down   the   steep   mountain-side,   and 


PARTING    TO  MEET  AGAIN  341 

rolled  away,  turning  somersaults  farther  and  farther, 
very  nearly  as  the  wheel  chair  had  done,  except  that 
fortunately  Peter  did  not  go  to  pieces,  like  the  chair. 

Only  the  despatch  was  badly  treated  and  torn  to 
shreds. 

"A  remarkably  bashful  mountaineer,"  said  Herr 
Sesemann  to  himself,  for  he  supposed  that  the  appear- 
ance of  a  stranger  had  produced  this  strong  impression 
on  the  simple  son  of  the  Alps. 

After  watching  Peter's  violent  descent  for  a  little, 
Herr  Sesemann  continued  his  way. 

In  spite  of  all  his  efforts  Peter  could  not  reach  a 
place  of  safety;  he  kept  rolling  on,  and  from  time  to 
time  turned  somersaults  in  the  strangest  fashion. 

But  this  was  not  the  most  frightful  side  of  his  mis- 
fortune at  this  moment ;  far  more  frightful  were  the 
anxiety  and  the  terror  that  filled  him,  for  he  was  sure 
now  that  the  policeman  from  Frankfurt  had  really 
come.  He  had  no  doubt  that  the  stranger  who  had 
asked  for  the  people  from  Frankfurt  at  the  Aim-Uncle's 
was  the  very  one.  Finally,  on  the  last  high  slope  above 
Dorfii,  Peter  rolled  against  a  bush  to  which  he  could 
cling  fast.  He  lay  still  there  for  a  moment,  for  he  had 
to  first  think  what  had  happened  to  him, 

"Very  good,  here's  another  one,"  said  a  voice  hard 
by  Peter.  "  And  who  is  going  to  catch  it  to-morrow 
for  sending  you  down  like  a  badly  sewed  potato 
sack .? " 

It  was  the  baker,  who  was  making  fun  of  him.  To 
amuse  himself  a  little  up  there  after  his  hot  day's  work, 


342  HEIDI 

he  had  been  quietly  watching  Peter  as  he  came  down 
the  mountain  very  much  as  the  wheel  chair  had  done. 

Peter  jumped  to  his  feet.  New  fear  seized  him. 
Now  the  baker  must  know  that  the  chair  had  been 
pushed.  Without  looking  back  once,  Peter  ran  up  the 
mountain  again. 

He  would  have  preferred  to  go  home  now  and  creep 
into  his  bed,  so  that  no  one  could  find  him,  for  he  felt 
safest  there.  But  he  had  left  the  goats  up  in  the  pas- 
ture, and  the  uncle  had  impressed  it  upon  him  to  come 
back  soon,  that  the  flock  might  not  be  alone  too  long. 
He  feared  the  uncle  more  than  any  one  else,  and  had 
such  respect  for  him  that  he  had  never  dared  to  disobey 
him.  Peter  groaned  aloud  and  limped  on,  for  it  had  to 
be ;  he  was  obliged  to  go  back  up  the  mountain  again. 
But  he  could  not  run  any  longer ;  his  anxiety  and  the 
many  knocks  that  he  had  received  could  not  fail  to 
affect  him.  So  he  went  on  limping  and  groaning  up 
the  Aim. 

Herr  Sesemann  had  reached  the  first  hut  shortly  after 
meeting  Peter,  and  knew  then  that  he  was  on  the  right 
path.  He  climbed  on  with  renewed  zeal  and  at  last, 
after  long,  tiresome  exertion,  he  saw  his  goal  before 
him.  There  stood  the  Aim  hut  and  the  dark  branches 
of  the  old  fir  trees  swaying  above  it. 

Herr  Sesemann  climbed  the  last  part  of  the  way  with 
delight,  for  he  was  soon  to  surprise  his  child.  But  the 
father  had  already  been  seen  and  recognized  by  the 
company  in  front  of  the  hut,  and  something  was  in 
store  for  him  which  he  had  never  suspected. 


PARTING    TO  MEET  AGAIN 


343 


When  he  had  taken  the  last  step  up  the  mountain,  two 
forms  came  toward  him  from  the  hut.  A  tall  young 
girl  with  light  yellow  hair  and  rosy  face,  leaning  on 
little  Heidi,  whose  dark  eyes  sparkled  with  the  keenest 


delight.  Herr  Sesemann  stopped  short ;  he  stood  still 
and  gazed  at  the  approaching  children.  Suddenly  big 
tears  rushed  from  his  eyes.  What  memories  arose  in 
his  heart !  Exactly  so  had  Klara's  mother  looked,  a 
blonde  maiden  with  cheeks  slightly  tinged  with  red. 


344  HEIDI 

Herr  Sesemann  did  not  know  whether  he  was  awake 
or  dreaming. 

"  Papa,  don't  you  know  me  any  longer  ? "  called  out 
Klara  to  him,  while  her  face  beamed  with  delight. 
"  Am  I  so  changed  ?  " 

Herr  Sesemann  rushed  toward  his  little  daughter  and 
folded  her  in  his  arms. 

"  Yes,  you  are  changed  !  Is  it  possible  ?  Is  it  really 
so?" 

And  the  overjoyed  father  stepped  back  again  to  see 
whether  the  picture  would  not  disappear  before  his 
eyes. 

"  Is  it  you,  Klarchen,  is  it  really  you .-' "  he  had  to 
exclaim  again  and  again.  He  folded  his  child  in  his 
arms  once  more,  and  then  he  had  to  look  again  to 
see  whether  it  really  was  Klara  standing  erect  before 
him. 

Then  the  grandmamma  came  out,  for  she  could  not 
wait  any  longer  to  see  her  son's  happy  face. 

"  Well,  my  dear  son,  what  do  you  say  now } "  she 
called  out  to  him.  "  The  surprise  which  you  have  given 
us  is  very  lovely,  but  the  one  prepared  for  you  is  still 
lovelier,  is  it  not  .-*  "  And  the  delighted  mother  greeted 
her  dear  son  with  great  affection. 

"  But  now,  my  dear,"  she  then  said,  "  come  with  me 
over  there  to  see  the  uncle,  who  is  our  greatest  bene- 
factor." 

"  Certainly,  and  our  little  companion,  our  little  Heidi, 
I  must  greet  also,"  said  Herr  Sesemann  as  he  shook 
Heidi's  hand.     "  Well }     Always  fresh  and  well  on  the 


PARTING   TO  MEET  AGAIN  345 

mountain  ?  But  I  don't  need  to  ask ;  no  Alpine  rose 
could  be  more  blooming.  This  is  a  joy  to  me,  child; 
this  is  a  great  joy  to  me  !  " 

Heidi  looked  with  beaming  eyes  at  the  kind  Herr 
Sesemann.  How  good  he  had  always  been  to  her ! 
And  that  now  he  should  find  such  a  joy  here  on  the 
mountain  made  Heidi's  heart  beat  loud  with  delight. 

Then  the  grandmamma  took  her  son  to  the  Aim- 
Uncle,  and  while  the  two  men  were  shaking  hands 
very  heartily,  and  Herr  Sesemann  was  beginning  to 
express  his  deep-felt  thanks  and  his  boundless  astonish- 
ment that  such  a  wonderful  thing  could  happen,  the 
grandmamma  turned  and  went  a  little  way  in  the  other 
direction,  for  she  had  already  talked  the  matter  over. 
She  wanted  to  look  at  the  old  fir  trees  again. 

Here  there  was  another  surprise  awaiting  her.  Under 
the  fir  trees,  where  the  long  branches  had  left  a  free 
space,  stood  a  great  bunch  of  wonderful  deep-blue  gen- 
tians, as  fresh  and  shining  as  if  they  had  grown  there. 
The  grandmamnia  clapped  her  hands  with  delight. 

"  How  exquisite  !  How  wonderful !  What  a  sight !" 
she  exclaimed  again  and  again.  "  Heidi,  my  dear  child, 
come  here !  •  Did  you  bring  these  here  to  please  me  t 
They  are  perfectly  wonderful !  " 

The  children  were  already  there. 

"  No,  no,  I  really  did  not,"  said  Heidi ;  "  but  I  know 
who  did." 

"  It  is  like  that  up  in  the  pasture,  grandmamma,  and 
even  more  beautiful,"  said  Klara.  "But  just  guess 
who  brought  the  flowers  down  from  the  pasture  for  you 


346  HEIDI 

early  this  morning ! "  and  Klara  smiled  with  so  much 
satisfaction  at  what  she  had  said  that  for  a  moment  it 
occurred  to  her  grandmamma  that  the  child  had  really 
been  up  there  herself  that  day.  But  that  was  almost 
impossible. 

A  gentle  rustling  was  then  heard  behind  the  fir  trees  ; 
it  came  from  Peter,  who  had  come  back  in  the  mean 
time.  When  he  saw  who  was  standing  in  front  of  the 
hut  with  the  uncle,  he  went  a  long  way  round  and  was 
going  to  slip  very  stealthily  behind  the  fir  trees.  But 
the  grandmamma  caught  sight  of  him,  and  a  new 
thought  suddenly  came  to  her.  Had  Peter  brought 
down  the  flowers,  and  was  he  creeping  away  now  so 
stealthily  from  sheer  timidity  and  modesty  }  No,  that 
must  not  be ;  he  should  have  a  little  reward. 

"  Come,  my  lad,  come  here  quickly,  and  don't  be 
afraid ! "  the  grandmamma  called  loudly,  putting  her 
head  a  little  way  between  the  trees. 

Petrified  with  fear,  Peter  stood  still.  He  had  not  the 
strength  to  resist  anything  more  that  might  happen. 
This  was  what  he  felt  :  "  Now  it  is  all  up !  "  His  hair 
stood  on  end,  and  with  a  pale  face,  distorted  by  the 
greatest  anguish,  Peter  stepped  out  from"  behind  the 
fir  trees. 

"  Come  right  straight  here,"  said  the  grandmamma 
encouragingly.  "There,  now  tell  me,  my  boy,  if  you 
did  this." 

Peter  did  not  lift  his  eyes,  and  did  not  see  where  the 
grandmamma's  finger  was  pointing.  He  had  noticed 
that  the  uncle  was  standing  by  the  corner  of  the  hut, 


PARTING   TO  MEET  AGAIN  347 

and  that  his  penetrating  gray  eyes  were  fastened  on 
him,  and  that  next  the  uncle  stood  the  most  terrible 
person  Peter  knew,  the  policeman  from  Frankfurt. 
Trembling  in  every  limb,  Peter  stammered  forth  one 
single  sound ;  it  was  a  "  Yes." 

"  There  now,"  said  the  grandmamma,  "  what  is  there 
to  be  frightened  about }  " 

**  Because  —  because  —  because  it  is  broken  to  pieces 
and  can  never  be  made  whole  again."  Peter  brought 
these  words  out  with  difficulty ;  and  his  knees  shook  so 
that  he  could  hardly  stand.  The  grandmamma  went 
along  to  the  corner  of  the  hut. 

"  My  dear  uncle,  is  the  poor  boy  really  out  of  his 
mind  } "  she  asked  sympathetically. 

"  Not  in  the  least,  not  in  the  least,"  asserted  the 
uncle ;  "  the  boy  is  the  wind  that  blew  away  the  wheel 
chair,  and  now  he  is  expecting  the  punishment,  which 
he  well  deserves." 

The  grandmamma  could  not  believe  this,  for  she  did 
not  think  Peter  Jooked  in  the  very  least  wicked,  and 
besides  he  had  no  reason  to  destroy  the  wheel  chair, 
which  was  so  much  needed.  But  this  confession  only 
confirmed  the  uncle  in  a  suspicion  which  had  been 
aroused  in  him  immediately  after  the  occurrence. 

The  angry  looks  which  Peter  had  cast  at  Klara  from 
the  very  first,  andrither  signs  of  a  bitter  feeling  toward 
the  newcomer  on  the  mountain  had  not  escaped  the 
uncle.  He  had  put  one  thought  with  another,  and  so 
he  had  felt  sure  enough  of  the  way  things  had  gone  and 
explained  it  all  very  clearly  now  to  the  grandmamma. 


348  HEIDI 

When  he  had  finished,   the   lady  burst  out   in   great 
excitement :  — 

"  No,  no,  my  dear  uncle ;  no,  no,  we  will  not  punish 
the  poor  fellow  any  further.  One  must  be  just.  Strange 
people  came  here  from  Frankfurt  and  for  long  weeks 
together  took  away  Heidi,  his  only  good,  and  really  a 
great  good  for  him,  and  he  sits  alone  there  day  after 
day,  looking  for  her.  No,  one  must  be  just ;  anger 
overpowered  him  and  drove  him  to  revenge,  which  was 
rather  foolish ;  but  in  our  anger  we  are  all  foolish." 

Whereupon  the  grandmamma  went  back  to  Peter, 
who  was  still  trembling  and  shaking. 

She  sat  down  on  the  bench  under  the  fir  tree  and 
said  kindly :  — 

"There,  now  come  here,  my  boy,  to  me;  I  have 
something  to  say  to  you.  Stop  trembling  and  shaking 
and  listen  to  me  ;  this  you  must  do.  You  sent  the 
wheel  chair  down  the  mountain,  in  order  to  smash  it. 
That  was  a  wicked  deed,  and  you  knew  it  very  well, 
and  you  also  knew  that  you  deserved  a  punishment, 
and  in  order  not  to  receive  one,  you  have  had  to  try 
very  hard  not  to  let  any  one  know  what  you  have  done. 
But  you  see,  whoever  does  a  wicked  thing  and  thinks 
no  one  knows  about  it  is  always  mistaken.  The  dear 
Lord  sees  and  hears  everything,  and  as  soon  as  he 
notices  that  a  person  wants  to  conceal  his  wicked  deed 
he  quickly  awakens  a  little  watchman,  that  was  placed 
in  him  at  his  birth,  and  that  sleeps  in  him  until  the 
person  does  something  wrong.  And  the  little  watch- 
man has  a  little  goad  in  his  hand  with  which  he  contin- 


PARTING    TO  MEET  AGAIN  349 

ually  pricks  the  person  so  that  he  has  no  rest  for  a 
moment.  And  with  his  voice  he  also  torments  him 
further,  by  constantly  calling  to  him  in  a  torturing 
way  :  *  It  will  all  come  out  1  You  are  going  to  be  pun- 
ished ! '  So  he  lives  in  continual  fear  and  trembling, 
and  is  no  longer  happy,  not  a  bit.  Have  you  not  had 
such  an  experience  as  this  just  now,  Peter .? " 

Peter  nodded  penitently,  and  as  one  who  knew,  for 
it  had  happened  to  him  exactly  so. 

"And  in  one  way  you  were  disappointed,"  continued 
the  grandmamma.  "See  how  the  wrong  that  you  did 
turned  out  for  the  best,  for  the  one  you  wished  to 
harm !  Because  Klara  no  longer  had  a  chair  to  be 
carried  in,  and  yet  wanted  to  see  the  beautiful  flowers, 
she  made  a  very  great  effort  to  walk,  and  so  learned 
how  and  now  keeps  improving ;  and  if  she  stays  here 
she  will  at  last  be  able  to  go  up  to  the  pasture  every 
day,  much  oftener  than  if  she  were  taken  in  her  chair. 
Do  you  understand,  Peter .?  So  when  one  wishes  to  do 
a  wicked  thing,  the  dear  Lord  can  take  it  quickly  into 
his  own  hands  and  turn  it  into  good  for  the  one  who 
was  to  be  harmed  ;  and  the  scoundrel  has  his  trouble 
for  nothing  and  injures  himself. 

"  Have  you  understood  everything  well,  Peter } 
Then  think  of  it ;  and  every  time  you  desire  to  do 
something  wicked,  think  of  the  little  watchman  within 
you,  with  his  goad  and  his  disagreeable  voice.  Will 
you  do  that.?" 

"  Yes,  I  will,"  answered  Peter,  very  much  impressed, 
for  he  did  not  yet  know  how  everything  would  end. 


'^>???5'?w3^,*f-'5'r^ " 


350  HEIDI 

since  the  policeman  was  still  standing  over  there  by 
the  uncle. 

"That  is  good,  the  matter  is  settled,"  said  the  grand- 
mamma in  conclusion.  "  But  now  you  ought  to  have 
something  you  like  to  remember  the  people  from 
Frankfurt  by.  Tell  me,  my  boy,  is  there  something 
you  have  wished  to  have }  What  was  it  ?  What  would 
you  like  to  have  best .? " 

Peter  then  lifted  his  head  and  stared  at  the  grands 
mamma  with  his  round,  astonished  eyes.  He  was 
still  expecting  something  frightful,  and  now  he  was 
suddenly  to  have  whatever  he  liked  best.  Peter's 
thoughts  were  all  in  confusion. 

"  Yes,  yes,  I  am  in  earnest,"  said  the  grandmamma. 
"  You  shall  have  something  which  you  will  like  as 
a  remembrance  of  the  people  from  Frankfurt,  and 
as  a  token  that  they  will  think  no  more  about  the 
wrong  that  you  did.  Do  you  understand  now, 
boy  .? " 

It  began  to  dawn  on  Peter  that  he  had  no  punishment 
to  fear  now,  and  that  the  good  lady  sitting  before  him 
had  rescued  him  from  the  power  of  the  policeman. 
Then  he  felt  as  relieved  as  if  a  mountain  which  was 
almost  crushing  him  had  been  taken  away  from  him. 
He  also  understood  now  that  it  is  better  to  confess 
one's  faults,  and  he  at  once  said :  — 

"And  I  lost  the  paper,  too." 

The  grandmamma  had  to  reflect  a  little,  but  she  soon 
remembered  and  said  kindly  :  — 

"  There,  that  is  right  to  tell  me  about  it !    Always 


PARTING    TO  MEET  AGAIN  351 

confess  what  is  wrong,  then  it  will  be  settled.    Now 
what  would  you  like  to  have  ? " 

Now  Peter  could  choose  anything  in  the  world  that 
he  would  like  to  have.  It  almost  made  him  dizzy. 
The  whole  fair  at  Mayenfeld  came  before  his  eyes, 
with  all  the  beautiful  things  which  he  had  often  looked 
at  for  hours  and  had  thought  he  could  never  have,  for 
Peter's  possessions  had  never  gone  beyond  five  pfen- 
nigs, and  such  alluring  objects  always  cost  double  that 
amount.  There  were  the  lovely  red  whistles,  which 
he  could  use  so  well  for  his  goats.  There  were  the 
fascinating  round-handled  knives  called  toad-stickers, 
with  which  he  could  do  a  thriving  business  in  all  the 
hazel-rod  hedges. 

Peter  stood  deep  in  thought,  for  he  was  considering 
which  of  the  two  were  the  most  desirable,  and  he  could 
not  decide.  Then  a  bright  idea  came  to  him  ;  by  this 
means  he  could  think  it  over  until  the  next  fair. 

"Ten  pfennigs,"  replied  Peter  decidedly. 

The  ^andmamma  laughed  a  little, 

"That  is  no£  extravagant.  So  come  here!"  She 
then  opened  her  purse  and  took  out  a  great,  round 
thaler ;   on  it  she  laid  two  ten-pfennig  pieces. 

"There,  we  will  count  it  out  exactly,"  she  continued  ; 
"  I  will  explain  it  to  you.  Here  you  have  just  as  many 
ten-pfennig  pieces  as  there  are  weeks  in  the  year!  So 
you  can  take  one  out  to  use  every  Sunday  the  whole 
year  through." 

"All,  my  life  long  }  "  asked  Peter  quite  innocently. 

Then  the  grandmamma  had  such  a   fit  of  laughter 


352  HEIDI 

that  the  gentlemen  yonder  had  to  stop  talking  to  hear 
what  was  going  on  there. 

The  grandmamma  kept  on  laughing. 

"  You  shall  have  it,  my  boy ;  I  will  put  it  in  my 
will  —  do  you  hear,  my  son  .-*  And  then  it  will  be 
handed  over  to  you ;  thus  :  To  goatherd  Peter  a  ten- 
pfennig  piece  weekly,  as  long  as  he  lives." 

Herr  Sesemann  nodded  in  assent  and  laughed  too  at 
the  idea. 

Peter  looked  again  at  the  present  in  his  hand,  to  see 
if  it  was  really  true.     Then  he   said  :  "  Thank  God  !  •" 

And  he  ran  away,  making  extraordinary  leaps ;  but 
this  time  he  stayed  on  his  feet,  for  now  he  was  not 
driven  by  fear  but  by  a  delight  such  as  he  had  never 
known  before  in  all  his  life.  All  his  anguish  and  fear 
had  disappeared,  and  he  could  expect  ten  pfennigs 
every  week  all  his  life  long. 

Later  when  the  company  in  front  of  the  Aim  hut 
had  ended  their  happy  midday  meal  and  were  still 
sitting  together  talking  about  all  sorts  of  things,  Klara 
took  her  father's  hand,  and  while  his  face  beamed  with 
delight,  said  with  an  enthusiasm  which  had  never  been 
known  in  the  old-time  feeble  Klara :  — 

"  Oh,  papa,  if  you  only  knew  all  that  the  grandfather 
has  done  for  me !  So  much  every  day  that  I  can't  tell 
you  about  it,  but  I  shall  never  forget  it  in  my  life.  I 
am  always  thinking,  if  I  could  only  do  something  for 
the  dear  grandfather  or  give  him  something  to  make 
him  as  happy  or  even  half  as  happy  as  he  has  made 
me." 


PARTING    TO  MEET  AGAIN  353 

"  That  is  my  greatest  desire  also,  my  dear  child," 
said  her  father ;  "  I  am  continually  thinking  how  we 
can  prove  our  gratitude  in  some  measure  to  our 
henef actor." 

Herr  Sesemann  then  rose  and  went  to  the  uncle, 
who  was  sitting  beside  the  grandmamma,  and  was  hav- 
ing an  unusually  pleasant  talk  with  her.  He  also  rose. 
Herr  Sesemann  grasped  his  hand  and  said  in  the  most 
friendly  way  :  — 

"  My  dear  friend,  let  us  have  a  word  together !  You 
will  understand  me  when  I  tell  you  that  for  many  long 
years  I  have  had  no  real  happiness.  What  was  all  my 
money  and  wealth  to  me  when  I  looked  at  my  poor 
child  whom  I  could  not  make  well  and  happy  with  all 
my  riches }  Next  to  our  God  in  heaven,  you  have 
made  the  child  well  for  me  and  given  new  life  to  me 
also.  Now  tell  me  how  I  can  show  my  gratitude  to 
you.  lean  never  repay  you  for  what  you  have  done 
for  us,  but  whatever  is  in  my  power  I  place  at  your 
disposal.     Tell  ipe,  my  friend,  what  I  can  do." 

The  uncle  had  listened  in  silence,  and  watched  the 
happy  father  with  a  smile  of  contentment. 

"Herr  Sesemann,  believe  me,  that  I  also  have  my 
share  in  the  great  joy  at  the  recovery  on  our  Aim ;  my 
pains  have  been  well  rewarded,"  said  the  uncle  in  his 
decided  way.  "  I  thank  you,  Herr  Sesemann,  for  your 
kind  offer,  but  there  is  nothing  that  I  need ;  as  long  as 
I  live  I  have  enough  for  the  child  and  myself.  But  I 
have  one  wish ;  if  I  could  have  that  granted,  I  should 
have  no  more  anxiety  for  life." 


354  HEIDI 

•*  Name  it,  name  it,  my  dear  friend  ! "  urged  Herr 
Sesemann. 

"I  am  old,"  continued . the  uncle,  "and  cannot  live 
here  much  longer.  When  I  go,  I  cannot  leave  the 
child  anything,  and  she  has  no  relatives,  only  one  single 
person,  and  she  would  take  advantage  of  her.  If  Herr 
Sesemann  would  give  me  the  assurance  that  Heidi 
would  never  in  her  life  have  to  go  out  among  strangers 
to  seek  her  bread,  then  he  would  have  richly  rewarded 
me  for  what  I  have  done  for  him  and  his  child." 

"  But,  my  dear  friend,  that  goes  without  saying," 
Herr  Sesemann  burst  forth ;  ♦'  the  child  belongs  to  us. 
Ask  my  mother,  my  daughter,  th^  child  Heidi  will 
never  be  left  to  other  people !  But  if  it  will  be  any 
comfort  to  you,  my  friend,  here  is  my  hand  on  it.  I 
promise  you  ;  never  in  her  life  shall  this  child  go  out 
to  earn  her  bread  among  strangers  ;  I  will  see  to  that  as 
long  as  I  live.  I  will  say  even  more.  This  child  is 
not  made  for  a  life  in  a  strange  land,  whatever  might 
happen  ;  we  have  seen  that.  But  she  has  made  friends. 
I  know  one  who  is  in  Frankfurt ;  he  is  settling  up  his 
business  there,  in  order  to  go  later  on  wherever  he  likes 
and  take  a  rest.  It  is  my  friend  the  doctor,  and  he 
is  coming  up  here  again  this  autumn,  and,  taking  your 
advice,  will  settle  in  this  region;  for  he  found  more 
pleasure  in  your  company  and  the  child's  than  any- 
where else.  So  you  see  the  child  Heidi  will  have  two 
protectors  near  her.  May  they  both  be  preserved  to 
her  for  a  long,  long  time ! " 

"  The  dear  Lord  grant  it  may  be  so ! "  the  grand- 


PARTING    TO  MEET  AGAIN  355 

mamma  added ;  and,  confirming  her  son's  wish,  she 
shook  the  uncle's  hand  heartily  for  a  long  whUe.  Then 
she  suddenly  threw  her  arms  around  Heidi's  neck,  as 
she  was  standing  beside  her,  and  drew  her  toward  her. 

"  And  you,  my  dear  Heidi,  we  must  also  ask  you  a 
question.  Come,  tell  me  if  you  have  a  wish  which 
you  would  like  to  have  granted." 

"  Yes,  indeed,  I  have,"  answered  Heidi,  looking  very 
much  delighted  at  the  grandmamma. 

"  Well,  that  is  right,  speak  it  out,"  she  said  encour- 
agingly.    "  What  would  you  like  to  have,  my  child  .-* " 

"  I  should  like  to  have  my  bed  in  Frankfurt,  with  the 
three  thick  pillows  and  the  thick  quilt,  for  then  the 
grandmother  would  not  have  to  lie  with  her  head  down- 
hill so  that  she  can  hardly  breathe,  and  she  would  be 
warm  enough  under  the  quilt,  and  wouldn't  always 
have  to  go  to  bed  with  a  shawl  on,  because  she  is 
terribly  cold." 

Heidi  said  this  all  in  one  breath  in  her  eagerness 
to  obtain  What  she  so  much  desired. 

"  Oh,  my  dear  Heidi,  what  are  you  telling  me }  "  ex- 
claimed the  grandmamma  in  excitement.  "It  is  a  good 
thing  that  you  remind  me.  In  our  joy  we  easily  forget 
what  we  ought  to  think  of  most.  When  the  dear  Lord 
sends  us  something  good,  we  ought  at  once  to  think  of 
those  who  are  in  need!  We  will  telegraph  immedi- 
ately to  Frankfurt !  Rottenmeier  shall  have  the  bed 
packed  up  this  very  day;  in  two  days  more  it  will  be 
here.  God  willing,  the  grandmother  shall  sleep  well 
in  it ! " 


356  HEIDI 

Heidi  danced  merrily  around  the  grandmamma.  But 
all  at  once  she  stood  still  and  said  hurriedly :  — 

"  I  must  really  go  as  fast  as  I  can  down  to  the  grand- 
mother's ;  she  will  be  troubled  because  I  have  n't  been 
there  for  so  long." 

For  Heidi  could  not  wait  any  longer  to  carry  the 
joyful  message  to  the  grandmother,  and  it  also  came 
to  her  mind  again  how  troubled  she  had  been  when 
she  was  there  last. 

"  No,  no,  Heidi ;  what  are  you  thinking  about }  "  said 
her  grandfather  reprovingly.  "  When  one  has  visitors, 
one  does  n't  run  away  from  them  all  of  a  sudden." 

But  the  grandmamma  took  Heidi's  part. 

"  My  dear  uncle,  the  child  is  not  wrong,"  she  said ; 
"  the  poor  grandmother  has  been  a  loser  for  a  long  time 
in  my  opinion.  Now  we  will  all  go  together  to  see 
her,  and  I  think  I  will  wait  for  my  horse  there,  and 
then  we  will  continue  our  way,  and  we  can  send  the 
telegram  at  once  to  Frankfurt  from  Dorfli.  My  son", 
what  do  you  think  of  it .? " 

Herr  Sesemann  had  not  had  time  before  to  speak 
about  his  plans.  So  he  had  to  ask  his  mother  not  to 
start  away  at  once,  but  to  sit  still  a  moment  longer 
until  he  had  told  her  what  he  intended  to  do. 

Herr  Sesemann  proposed  to  take  a  little  journey 
through  Switzerland  with  his  mother,  and  first  to  see 
whether  his  little  Klara  was  in  a  condition  to  travel  a 
short  distance  with  them.  Now  it  had  so  happened 
that  he  saw  he  could  take  the  enjoyable  journey  in 
company  with  his  little  daughter,  and  he  was  anxious 


PARTING   TO  MEET  AGAIN  357 

to  take  advantage  at  once  of  these  lovely  late  summer 
days.  He  had  in  mind  to  spend  the  night  in  Dorfli  and 
on  the  following  morning  to  take  Klara  away  from  the 
Aim,  to  go  with  her  to  meet  her  grandmamma  down  in 
Ragatz,  and  from  there  to  travel  on  farther. 

Klara  was  a  little  disturbed  to  hear  of  this  sudden 
departure  from  the  Aim ;  but  there  were  so  many  other 
things  to  be  happy  about,  and  besides  there  was  no 
time  to  give  way  to  grief. 

The  grandmamma  had  already  risen  and  had  grasped 
Heidi's  hand  to  lead  the  way.  Then  all  of  a  sudden 
she  turiied  around. 

"  But  what  in  the  world  will  you  do  with  Klarchen  }" 
she  exclaimed  in  alarm,  for  it  occurred  to  her  that  the 
walk  would  be  much  too  long  for  her. 

But  the  uncle  had  already  taken  his  little  charge  in 
his  usual  way  in  his  arms,  and  was  following  the  grand- 
mamma with  firm  steps,  and  she  nodded  back  to  him 
with  satisfaction.  Last  came  Herr  Sesemann,  and  so 
the  procession  went  on  down  the  mountain. 

Heidi  could  not  help  dancing  with  delight  as  she 
went  along  by  the  side  of  the  grandmamma,  who  wanted 
to  know  everything  about  the  grandmother,  how  she 
lived,  and  how  they  got  along,  especially  in  winter, 
during  the  severely  cold  weather  up  there. 

Heidi  told  her  about  everything,  for  she  knew  how 
they  managed,  and  how  the  grandmother  sat  bowed  over 
in  her  corner  and  trembled  with  the  cold.  She  also 
knew  very  well  what  they  had  to  eat  and  what  they  did 
not  have. 


358  HEIDI 

The  grandmamma  listened  with  the  liveliest  interest 
to  all  that  Heidi  had  to  tell  her  until  they  reached  the 
hut. 

Brigitte  was  just  hanging  out  Peter's  second  shirt  in 
the  sun,  so  that  when  his  other  one  had  been  worn  long 
enough  he  could  change  it.  She  noticed  the  people 
and  rushed  into  the  house. 

"  They  are  all  going  away  now,  mother,"  she  said ; 
"there  is  a  whole  procession  of  them;  the  uncle  is 
with  them ;  he  is  carrying  the  sick  child." 

"  Oh,  must  it  really  be  }  "  sighed  the  grandmother. 
"  Did  you  see  whether  they  were  taking  Heidi  with 
them  ?  Oh,  if  she  would  only  give  me  her  hand  once 
more !     If  I  could  only  hear  her  voice  once  again  ! " 

Now  the  door  was  suddenly  flung  open  as  if  by  a 
whirlwind,  and  Heidi  came  springing  into  the  corner 
where  the  grandmother  was,  and  threw  her  arms  around 
her  neck. 

"Grandmother!  grandmother!  My  bed  is  coming 
from  Frankfurt,  and  all  three  pillows,  and  the  thick 
quilt,  too ;  in  two  days  it  will  be  here,  the  grandmamma 
said  so," 

Heidi  could  hardly  bring  out  her  message  fast  enough, 
for  she  could  scarcely  wait  to  see  the  grandmother's 
great  delight.  She  smiled,  but  there  was  sadness  in 
her  voice  as  she  said  :  — 

"  Oh,  what  a  good  lady  she  is  !  I  ought  to  be  glad 
that  she  is  going  to  take  you  with  her,  Heidi ;  but  T 
shall  not  survive  it  long." 

"  What  ?  what  ?     Who  says  such  a  thing  to  the  good 


PARTING    TO  MEET  AGAIN  359 

old  grandmother  ? "  asked  a  friendly  voice  here  ;  and 
the  old  dame's  hand  was  grasped  and  heartily  pressed, 
for  the  grandmamma  had  come  in  and  heard  everything. 
"  No,  no,  it  is  no  such  thing !  Heidi  will  stay  with 
the  grandmother  and  make  her  happy.  We  shall  want 
to  see  the  child  again,  but  we  will  come  to  her.  We 
shall  come  up  to  the  Aim  every  year,  for  we  have  rea- 
son to  offer  our  especial  thanks  to  the  dear  Lord 
annually  in  this  place  where  such  a  miracle  has  been 
done  to  our  child." 

Then  the  true  light  of  joy  came  into  the  grand- 
mother's face,  and  with  speechless  thanks  she  pressed 
the  good  Frau  Sesemann's  hand  again  and  again,  while 
a  couple  of  great  tears  from  sheer  joy  glided  down  her 
aged  cheeks.  Heidi  at  once  noticed  the  joyful  light  in 
the  grandmother's  face  and  was  quite  happy. 

"Truly,  grandmother,"  she  said,  pressing  close  to 
her,  "it  has  come  just  as  I  read  to  you  the  last  time! 
Really,  the  bed  from  Frankfurt  is  wholesome,  isn't 
it .? " 

"Oh,  yes,  Heidi,  and  so  much  more,  so  much  good 
the  dear  Lord  has  done  for  me ! "  said  the  grand- 
mother, deeply  moved.  "How  is  it  possible  that  there 
are  such  good  people  who  trouble  themselves  about  a 
poor  old  woman  and  do  so  much  for  her.?  There  is 
nothing  that  can  so  strengthen  one's  belief  in  a  good 
Father  in  heaven  who  will  not  forget  even  the  lowliest, 
as  to  learn  that  there  are  such  people,  full  of  goodness 
and  compassion  for  a  poor,  worthless  woman  such  as 
I  am." 


360  HEIDI 

"My  good  grandmother,"  broke  in  Frau  Sesemann, 
"before  our  Father  in  heaven  we  all  are  equally 
poor,  and  it  is  equally  necessary  to  all  of  us  that  He 
should  not  forget  us.  And  now  we  must  leave  you, 
but  we  hope  to  see  you  again,  for  as  soon  as  we  come 
back  again  next  year  to  the  Alm^  we  shall  try  to  find 
the  grandmother  once  more ;  she  will  never  be  for- 
gotten !  " 

Whereupon  Frau  Sesemann  grasped  the  old  dame's 
hand  again  and  shook  it. 

But  she  did  not  get  away  as  quickly  as  she  thought, 
for  the  grandmother  could  not  stop  thanking  her  and 
wishing  all  the  good  that  the  dear  Lord  had  it  in  His 
power  to  give,  for  her  benefactress  and  all  her  house- 
hold. 

Then  Herr  Sesemann  went  down  toward  the  valley 
with  his  mother,  while  the  uncle  carried  Klara  back 
home  once  more ;  and  Heidi,  without  pausing,  jumped 
high  as  she  went  beside  her,  for  she  was  so  pleased 
with  the  grandmother's  prospects  that  she  had  to  jump 
at  every  step. 

But  the  following  morning  Klara  shed  hot  tears  because 
she  had  to  go  away  from  the  beautiful  Aim,  where  she 
had  been  better  than  she  had  ever  been  before  in  all  her 
life.    But  Heidi  comforted  her  and  said  :  — 

"  It  will  be  summer  again  in  no  time,  and  then  you 
will  come  back,  and  then  it  will  be  more  beautiful  than 
ever.  Then  you  can  walk  all  the  time,  and  we  can  go 
up  to  the  pasture  with  the  goats  every  day  and  see  the 
flowers,  and  everything  will  be  jolly  from  the  very  first." 


PARTING    TO  MEET  AGAIN  361 

Herr  Sesemann  came  according  to  agreement  to  get 
his  little  daughter.  He  was  standing  with  the  grand- 
father, for  the  men  had  all  sorts  of  things  to  talk  over. 
Klara  was  wiping  away  her  tears.  Heidi's  words  had 
comforted  her  a  little, 

"  I  will  leave  a  greeting  for  Peter,"  she  said,  "  and 
for  all  the  goats,  especially  Schwanli.  Oh,  if  only  I 
could  make  Schwanli  a  present;  she  has  helped  so 
much  to  make  me  well." 

"  You  can  do  that  very  easily,"  asserted  Heidi. 
"  Only  send  her  a  little  salt.  You  know  how  gladly  she 
licks  the  salt  from  grandfather's  hand  at  night," 

This  advice  pleased  Klara  very  much. 

"  Oh,  then,  I  will  certainly  send  her  a  hundred  pounds 
of  salt  from  Frankfurt!"  she  exclaimed  with  delight. 
*'  She,  too,  must  have  a  remembrance  from  me." 

Herr  Sesemann  then  beckoned  to  the  children,  for 
he  wished  to  start.  This  time  the  grandmamma's  white 
horse  came  for  Klara,  and  she  was  now  able  to  ride 
down ;  she  no  longer  needed  a  sedan  chair. 

Heidi  stationed  "herself  at  the  extreme  edge  of  the 
slope  and  waved  her  hand  to  Klara  until  the  last  speck 
of  horse  and  rider  had  disappeared. 


The  bed  came,  and  the  grandmother  still  sleeps  so 
well  in  it  that  she  is  really  gaining  new  strength. 

The  kind  grandmamma  did  not  forget  the  hard  win- 
ter on  the  mountain.  She  had  a  great  case  sent  to 
goatherd  Peter's  house ;  there  were  many  warm  things 


362  HEIDI 

packed  in  it  in  which  the  grandmother  could  wrap 
herself  up,  and  now  she  never  has  to  sit  any  more 
shivering  with  the  cold  in  the  corner. 

There  is  a  large  building  in  progress  in  Dorfli.  The 
doctor  has  come  and  has  taken  up  his  old  quarters. 
Through  the  advice  of  his  friend  he  purchased  the  old 
building  where  the  uncle  lived  with  Heidi  in  the  winter, 
and  which  had  been  once  a  great  mansion,  as  could  still 
be  seen  from  the  lofty  room  with  the  handsome  stove 
and  the  artistic  wainscoting.  This  part  of  the  house 
the  doctor  is  having  rebuilt  for  his  own  dwelling.  The 
other  side  is  being  restored  as  winter  quarters  for  the 
uncle  and  Heidi,  for  the  doctor  knew  the  old  man  was 
independent  and  would  want  to  have  his  own  house. 
Back  of  it  is  a  firmly  built,  warm  goatshed  where 
Schwanli  and  Barli  can  spend  their  winter  days  most 
comfortably. 

The  doctor  and  the  Aim-Uncle  are  becoming  better 
friends  every  day,  and  when  they  climb  together  about 
the  building  to  look  after  the  progress  of  the  work, 
their  thoughts  turn  mostly  to  Heidi,  for  to  both  of 
them  the.  chief  joy  in  the  house  is  that  they  will  be 
together  with  their  happy  child. 

"  My  dear  uncle,"  said  the  doctor  the  other  day,  as  he 
was  standing  up  on  the  wall  with  the  old  man,  ♦'  you 
must  look  at  the  matter  as  I  do.  I  share  all  joy  in  the 
child  with  you,  as  if  next  to  you  I  were  the  one  to 
whom  the  child  belongs  ;  I  will  share  all  obligations  and 
care  for  the  child  as  well  as  I  know  how.  So  I  have 
also  my  right  in  our  Heidi,  and  can  hope  that  she  will 


PARTING   TO  MEET  AGAIN  363 

care  for  me  in  my  old  age  and  stay  with  me ;  this  is 
my  greatest  desire.  Heidi  shall  share  in  my  property 
as  my  own  child ;  so  we  can  leave  her  without  any 
anxiety  when  we  have  to  go  away  from  her — you  and  I." 

The  uncle  pressed  the  doctor's  hand  for  a  long  time  ; 
he  spoke  not  a  word,  but  his  good  friend  could  read  in 
the  old  man's  eyes  the  emotion  and  keen  delight  which 
his  words  had  aroused. 

Meanwhile  Heidi  and  Peter  were  sitting  with  the 
grandmother,  and  the  first  had  so  much  to  relate,  and 
the  other  so  much  to  listen  to,  that  they  could  hardly 
get  their  breath,  and  in  their  eagerness  kept  getting 
nearer  and  nearer  to  the  happy  grandmother. 

There  was  so  much  to  talk  about  regarding  the  events 
of  the  summer,  for  they  had  been  together  so  little  all 
this  time. 

And  each  of  the  three  looked  happier  than  the  others 
at  being  together  again,  and  because  of  the  wonder- 
ful things  that  had  taken  place.  But  the  face  of 
mother  Brigitte  looked  almost  the  happiest,  for  with 
Heidi's  help  she  now  for  the  first  time  heard  clearly 
and  understandingly  about  the  story  of  the  perpetual 
ten-pfennig  piece.     Finally  the  grandmother  said :  — 

"  Heidi,  read  me  a  song  of  praise  and  thanksgiving ! 
I  feel  like  praising  and  glorifying  our  Lord  in  heaven 
and  giving  Him  thanks  for  all  that  He  has  done 
for  us." 


> 


PRONOUNCING  VOCABULARY 


Adelheid 

Ah'dell-hide 

Aim 

Ahlm  (like  Im  in  elm) 

Barbel 

Bar'bell 

Barli 

Bearlee 

Basle, 

Bahl 

Brigitte 

Bree-ghit'ta 

Casaplana 

Kay'sah-plah'na 

Dete 

Day'tay 

Distelfinck 

Dees'tell-fink 

Domleschg 

Dome'lesshk 

Dorfli 

Der'flee 

Falkniss 

Fahlk'nees 

Frankfurt 

Frahnk'foort 

Fraulein  Rottenmeier 

Froy'line  Rot'ten-my-er 

Gnadige  Frau 

Gnay'dig-a  Frow 

Grison 

Gree'zone 

Heidi 

Hi'dee 

Herr 

Hair 

Herr  Kandidat 

Hair  Kahn-dee-daht' 

Holstein 

Holl'stine 

Im  Dorfli 

Eem  Der'flee 

Johann 

Yo-hahn' 

Johanna  Spyri 

Yo-hahn'na  Spee'ree 

Klarchen 

Klair-shen 

Kreutzer 

Kroit'ser 

Maiensass 

My'en-sayce 

Mayenfeld 

My'en-felt 

Mels 

Melss 

Ohi 

O'hee 

Peterli 

Pay'tare-lee 

Pfafferserdorf 

Pfef'fer-ser-dorf 

Pfennig 

Pfen'nig 

Prattigau 

Prayt'tee-gow 

Ragatz 

Rah-gahtz' 

Schnecke 

Shneck'a 

Schneehopli 

Shnaylierp-lee 

Schwanli 

Shwainlee 

Sesemann 

Zay'say-mahn 

365 


1.  ^> 


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■J'.?-"  - 


J^.^.;;,;-. 


<y/C?e  T        y  -  Fd-t' 


■<i^^c. 


10  ^ff 


\ 


^1    • 


.1/vM   1    I '*r'_  *_ 


V-^X-Ji'T&^d 


